Name: 男生女生都看過來！關於「生理期」你可能不知道的五件事！ (Five things you probably didn’t know about periods | BBC Ideas)
Uploaded: 2025-07-23T18:20:23.000Z
Duration: 4 min 54 s

What do humans, some primates, some bats, the spiny mouse, and the elephant shrew have in common?

人類、某些靈長類動物、某些蝙蝠、刺鼠和象鼩有什麼共同點？

I'm Gabriela Contaridis and I'm studying for my doctorate at the University of Oxford and I am fascinated about menstrual cycles.

我是 Gabriela Contaridis，正在牛津大學攻讀博士學位，我對月經週期非常著迷。

Menstruation is a natural process that affects half of the world's population during their lives but it's little understood.

月經是一個自然過程，影響著世界上一半人口的一生，但人們對它卻知之甚少。

So here's five things you probably didn't know about periods.

以下是你可能不知道的關於月經的五件事。

The idea that menstrual cycles sync up with the cyclical waxing and waning of the moon much like the ocean tides.

月經週期與月亮的週期性消長同步，就像海洋潮汐一樣。

But in 2019, an analysis of 7.5 million menstrual cycles from 1.5 million women around the world found no relationship at all.

但在 2019 年，對全球 150 萬名女性的 750 萬個月經週期進行分析後發現，兩者之間根本沒有關係。

Another commonly held view is that when people live together, their periods sync up.

另一個普遍的觀點是，當人們住在一起時，他們的月經就會同步。

Humans love to find patterns and a certain amount of overlap is to be expected.

人類喜歡尋找模式，一定程度的重疊是意料之中的。

But actual syncing of cycles is not backed by data.

但實際的週期同步並沒有數據支持。

The textbook idea of a 28-day cycle is a bit of a myth too.

教科書上所說的 28 天週期也是個神話。

A normal cycle can be anything up to seven days longer or shorter than this.

正常的生理週期可長可短，最長可達七天。

荷爾蒙能以一種好的方式產生強大的力量。

It's an incredible hormone that we're only just starting to understand.

這是一種不可思議的激素，我們才剛剛開始瞭解它。

There's a specific type of oestrogen that's made in the ovaries called estradiol.

卵巢會產生一種特殊的雌激素，叫做雌二醇。

This is released throughout the menstrual cycle and it peaks just around ovulation.

它在整個月經週期都會釋放，在排卵前後達到峰值。

Research suggests oestrogen can have some powerful effects.

研究表明，雌激素有一些強大的作用。

In 2021, neuroscientists at the University of California, Santa Barbara, for the first time, tracked a woman's hormones throughout the cycle and looked at whether these had any impact on the brain.

2021 年，加州大學聖巴巴拉分校的神經科學家首次追蹤了女性在整個生理週期中的荷爾蒙變化，並研究這些變化是否會對大腦產生影響。

They found an increase in connectivity throughout the brain at times when oestrogen was high.

他們發現，在雌激素較高時，整個大腦的連通性會增加。

One theory is that oestrogen causes our neurons to form new connections to other neurons, which helps with learning and memory. 98% of mammals don't have periods.

一種理論認為，雌激素會使我們的神經元與其他神經元形成新的連接，從而有助於學習和記憶。98%的哺乳動物沒有月經。

Lots of animals do have reproductive cycles, like cats and elephants, but they reabsorb the lining of the womb rather than shedding it as a period.

很多動物都有生殖週期，比如貓和大象，但它們會重新吸收子宮內膜，而不是像月經那樣脫落。

那麼，人類為什麼會來月經呢？

One theory, put forward by evolutionary geneticist Dina Emira, is that it's a tug-of-war of energy between the mother and baby.

進化遺傳學家 Dina Emira 提出的一種理論認為，這是母嬰之間的能量拉鋸戰。

Human embryos bury deep into the lining of the womb, which gives them more access to nutrients from the mother's body.

人類胚胎深埋在子宮內膜中，這樣就能從母體中獲得更多的營養。

So the lining of the womb builds up nice and thick each month to create a shield to protect the mother.

子宮內膜每個月都會增厚，形成保護母親的屏障。

This thick lining also makes it easier to shed, so she doesn't expend a huge amount of energy if a fetus won't ultimately make it.

這種厚厚的內膜也更容易脫落，所以如果胎兒最終無法順利出生，她也不會耗費大量的精力。

The ancient Greeks thought the womb wandered around the body, literally.

古希臘人認為，子宮是在身體周圍遊蕩的。

And as it floated around, they believed this wandering womb caused all sorts of diseases.

由於它四處飄蕩，他們認為這個遊蕩的子宮會引發各種疾病。

Bizarre as it sounds, this idea stuck around for centuries.

雖然聽起來很奇怪，但這種想法卻流傳了幾個世紀。

And so did the idea of hysteria, the kind of catch-all pseudo-medical term which was used to undermine women.

歇斯底里的概念也是如此，它是一種包羅萬象的偽醫學術語，被用來損害婦女的利益。

In 1931, a new term was coined, PMT, or premenstrual tension.

1931 年，人們創造了一個新名詞 PMT，即經前症候群

This was later renamed premenstrual syndrome, or PMS, and refers to any symptoms experienced in the week before the start of a period.

PMS，指月經來潮前一週出現的任何症狀。

Some argue the term syndrome is not useful, and it would be more accurate to refer to premenstrual symptoms.

有些人認為「症候群」這個術語沒有用，更準確的說法應該是經前症狀。

Why do women experience premenstrual symptoms?

Inflammation is the body's way of protecting itself from infection.

發炎是人體保護自己免受感染的一種方式。

And just as our hormone levels change during a menstrual cycle, so do levels of inflammation.

正如我們的荷爾蒙水準在月經週期中會發生變化一樣，發炎水準也會發生變化。

Adovulation, part of our immune system, is temporarily suppressed a little.

免疫系統中的排卵功能會暫時受到一點抑制。

That's so a fertilized egg, if there is one, can implant itself without getting rejected.

這樣，受精卵（如果有的話）就能在不被排斥的情況下著床。

While inflammation is a sign of a strong immune system, too much inflammation is bad.

雖然發炎是免疫系統強大的標誌，但過多的發炎是不好的。

Symptoms include headaches, tiredness, changes in appetite.

症狀包括頭痛、疲倦、食慾改變。

Some have suggested it's this rise in inflammation in the second half of the cycle that's actually behind what we call PMS.

有些人認為，在生理週期的後半段，發炎會加劇，這就是我們所說的 PMS。

So that's a quick rundown of a few facts, myths, and theories about periods.

以上就是關於生理期的一些事實、神話和理論的簡要介紹。

And still, there's so much unknown about something that happens to half of the world's population at some point in their life.

然而，對於世界上一半人口一生中都會發生的事情，人們仍然有太多的未知。

But that's exciting because it means there is so much more to discover.

但這令人興奮，因為這意味著還有更多的東西等待我們去發現。

If you enjoyed that, be sure to check out these videos next.

如果你喜歡，請務必查看接下來的影片。

And if you haven't already, hit the subscribe button and click the bell to get a notification each time we upload a new video.

如果你還沒有訂閱，請點擊訂閱按鈕，然後開啟小鈴鐺，這樣我們每次上傳新影片時你都會收到通知。

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男生女生都看過來！關於「生理期」你可能不知道的五件事！ (Five things you probably didn’t know about periods | BBC Ideas)

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