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by Elsimar M. Coutinho, with Sheldon J. Segal, 208 pp, $24, ISBN 0-19-513021-9, New York, Oxford University Press, 1999.

JAMA. 2000;283:1623-1624.

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text and any section headings.

The main premise of this provocative book is that menstruation is unpleasant, unnecessary, and even unhealthy. The argument has merit for women with specific diseases such as endometriosis or anemia caused by menorrhagia. However, the author, a pioneer in the development and testing of oral contraceptives, seems to be making a case for broader application. He writes that the initial decision not to use oral contraceptives continuously, and thereby avoid regular bleeding cycles, was based on the belief that women want to menstruate to be sure they are not pregnant. This, he says, was a mistake.

The chapters on menstruation history are fun to read. How many know that Hippocrates' belief that monthly bleeding was good for women's health led to therapeutic bloodletting for men, women, and children, a practice that continued into the 1800s? Today, there is little evidence that menstrual bleeding improves health or prevents uterine infection or . . . [Full Text of this Article]

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