Sunday, October 14, 2012
All 40 Of Sheikh’s Wives Get Their Period At The Same Time--studies suggested pheromones were responsible and that “menstrual synchrony
Published On: Wed, Oct 3rd, 2012
All 40 Of Sheikh’s Wives Get Their Period At The Same Time
Harem has been put under quarantine to avert a greater catastrophe
His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Zayed Khalifa, one of the richest men in the United Arab Emirates, first heard about the disaster from his eunuch, sources within the palace report.
In the meantime, the troubled man managed to answer a few quick questions from media representatives.
“Back when I only had two wives I could maybe handle a couple of mood swinging, bloated, depressed, angry and resentful chocolate-eating monsters at a time, but with just one more than that you’re as good as dead. I was convinced that this would never happen with all forty of them at the same time – I mean, what are the odds?” the grief-stricken ruler asked.
Palace representatives said that the harem would be put under quarantine for the next several days in order to avert a greater catastrophe, and that the Sheikh would do the same thing any other man would do in similar circumstances, “hide somewhere until it all passes.”
One of the Sheikh’s wives spoke to reporters about the mood inside the palace. “How is it even possible to cycle through every human emotion in one day? It’s so exhausting. And we get no support from our husband. None of us even give a damn if he comes back unless he brings us mass quantities of chocolate covered peanut butter balls,” Adara al-Sadah, wife number 28, was quoted as saying.
The Arab billionaire stated in the end that “having a harem can easily transform from being every man’s sweetest dream to every man’s worst nightmare.”
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Do Women's Periods Really Sync Up?
Does "menstrual synchrony" exist, or is it just an urban legend?
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Sync Up or Sex Up—The Need to Know
In 1971, a study speculated that regular contact with other women could affect female’s menstrual cycles. Researchers found social interaction was key to matched cycles, and close friends and women who were in contact for a substantial portion of every day (say, hanging out or working together) were more likely to sync up than women who merely lived in proximity to each other (e.g., on the same floor of a dorm). Follow-up studies suggested pheromones were responsible and that “menstrual synchrony” (the technical term for syncing) might be just the tip of the iceberg: It’s possible periods and ovulation could be socially regulated throughout a woman’s lifespan, from puberty to pregnancy and everywhere in between.
But while many researchers uphold the syncing theory, boy has there been a backlash. The pro-syncing crowd has been criticized for poor research methods, and the existence of natural synchrony hasn’t been confirmed in non-human primate studies.
In fact, synced cycles might not make sense evolutionarily. Syncing up in a hunter-gatherer tribe, for example, would mean that for a week or so, no woman would be able to get pregnant—not ideal when you’re responsible for procreating the human race. Instead of having matched cycles, women might unknowingly sync up phases of “sexual receptivity” and the lack thereof—meaning one woman is ready to get pregnant while another is just starting to menstruate, giving fertile women a more diverse choice of mates. (Of course, these are all very biological arguments, operating on the presumption that every woman’s goal in life is to get pregnant.)
Menstrual Mystery—The Debate
Unfortunately, there isn’t a definitive answer to the science of syncing, says Frederick Naftolin, Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology and Director of Reproductive Biology Research at NYU. Synchronization is possible—in non-human animals, anyway. Manually matching up cycles (typically with the hormone progesterone) is key to many agricultural areas that rely on artificial insemination of cows, goats, and buffalos, as synchrony allows for simultaneous impregnation of a herd. But evidence for naturally-occurring human synchrony hasn’t been confirmed via adequately controlled, randomized trials.
Still, some researchers strongly maintain menstrual synchrony is real. Anecdotal evidence certainly seems to support the idea of syncing, says Martha Thomas, Associate Residency Program Director in the OB/GYN department at York Hospital/Wellspan Health. And it’s hard to say how factors like stress, sexual partners, and birth control play into the syncing game—if synchrony does exist, it’s possible these factors override it, making matched cycles appear less common than they might actually be.
But this is mostly speculation, stresses Thomas. Most contemporary research holds that it’s unlikely women will actually sync up month after month after month, especially because the length of individuals’ cycles can vary so dramatically. What seems most likely is that women don’t actually synchronize, but rather have the occasional synced period when their cycles’ lengths randomly overlap.
Surprised? Us too. But we’ll still share the Midol, whether or not we’re suffering too.
Thanks to Dr. Frederick Naftolin and Dr. L. Martha Ann Thomas for their help with this article.
Do your experiences contradict the science on this one? Let us know in comments below, or get in touch with the author on Twitter @LauraNewc.
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