• The National Women’s Law Center issued the 2010 national and state-by-state report card on women’s health, evaluating criteria such as percentage of women with health insurance, access to abortion providers, causes of death, frequency of annual mammograms and pap smears, and many more. As a nation, the U.S. meets just three benchmarks: the percentage of women getting mammograms regularly, the percentage of women visiting the dentist annually, and the percentage of women getting screened for colorectal cancer. FAIL.
• As U.S. readers know, Elizabeth Edwards died of breast cancer this week, at age  61. Amanda Hess takes on the body shaming she experienced from the press, in life and in death.
• More on new TSA (Transportation Security Administration) screening procedures and gender: Judith Levine explains why she’d rather be gazed at than groped.
• Congratulations to everyone at LunaPads on ten years of eco positive periods!
• Tips on avoiding shark attacks: “until controlled tests involving non-menstruating and menstruating women occur, there is no definitive or scientifically proven data that states women are at more risk of shark attack during menstruation.”

• Dysmenorrhea and constipation both occur more frequently in young women who skip breakfast, according to survey research published in December, 2010, issue of Appetite.
• Joan B. Wolf’s new book, Is Breast Best?, argues that there is no scientific reason to prefer the breast to the bottle. Karen Winkler reviews it at the Chronicle of Higher Education.
• On the need for more board games about menstruation.
• A new report from the Institute of Medicine of the National Academies says that vitamin D and calcium supplements are not needed, and the high levels of vitamin D recommended by some physicians may even be harmful. The full report is available here.
• Can a magnet in your underpants eliminate hot flashes? And other menopause marketing.

• More about TSA “enhanced” scanners: GladRags published a letter this week from a customer whose flannel pantyliner led to a search of her genital area.
• Who writes health news? Maybe re:Cycling is more of a public service than I realized.
• An urban legend that just won’t die: Is semen an anti-depressant? Not so much.
• March of Dimes recommends against getting a tattoo during pregnancy.
• Pelvic exams should be a regular part of women’s health care, but they aren’t necessary for a prescription for birth control pills.
• Bad Reputation continues the Alphabet of Feminism with “H is for Hysteria“.

• Sociological Images presents analysis of how a purportedly informative slide show about birth control shows a socially approved timeline for reproduction: no sex for teens, wait until 30s to have babies (which is not optional), etc.
• The Washington Post exposes the lie about post-abortion stress syndrome and other anti-woman legislation: “The latest war on abortion is being fought less over women’s bodies than over their minds.”
• TIME magazine reports on new research about anorexia, menstruation, and conception, and the surprising finding that anorexic women have higher rates of unplanned pregnancy than other groups.
• A humorous and informative conversation at Reddit about the new TSA scanners and menstrual cups vaginal terror flasks. [via Geek Feminism]

I think my calendar is broken. How can it be November already?!?

• Visualizing menstruation: Design student Bridgett Coremans has designed a pair of clocks that visualize the female reproductive cycle with the idea of “helping women reconnect to the natural rhythms of their bodies.”
• Estrogen may help women in recovering from injury more quickly than men, according to researchers at Johns Hopkins.
• The pink parade of be-ribboned consumer products for Pink-tober isn’t over until you’ve voted on the worst offenders.

It’s Halloween weekend!

• Our Bodies, Ourselves is collecting personal stories about women’s relationships with the text for their 40th anniversary edition, due next year.
• The yoga pose known as the lotus can help ease menstrual cramps.
• Alarm about how use of estrogen creams are affecting those who come into contact with women who use the stuff: pets apparently lick the cream off the users hands and develop symptoms that resemble heat: swollen genitals, bloody discharge and behavioral problems. Male animals may develop swollen breast tissue and hair loss.
• USA Today reports on a study that supposedly confirms “menstruation affects women’s emotions”, but with no information about the size of the study. (Stay away from the comments section, unless you’ve got an awful lot of Sanity Watchers points to spare.)
• Speaking of comment sections, have you seen this cartoon depicting how internet discussions of gender issues tend to go?

Here’s a sample of our late October reading:

• Researchers at University of Calgary discuss why monkeys don’t go through menopause.
• Tracy Clark-Flory considers the Wall Street Journal‘s report about women who don’t consistently take their birth control pills when they’re also taking medications that could cause birth defects.
• Research shows how men’s spending and risk-taking patterns are linked to their hormones.
• Rachel Maddow was interviewed yesterday at The Feministing Five, about her interest in reproductive rights and her new documentary, The Assassination of Dr. Tiller (scheduled to air in the U.S. on Monday, October 25, 9:00 pm Eastern/6:00 pm Pacific).

• Listen to this interview with Elizabeth Scharpf, CEO of Sustainable Health Enterprises (S.H.E.) about the project that lead to her winning the Curry Stone design prize.
• New guidelines from the New York State Department of Health on menstrual disorders in HIV-positive women.
• Arwyn articulates some of the weaknesses of the much-hyped book FLOW: The Cultural Story of Menstruation.
• Visit SMCR’s main site for the Call for Papers for our 2011 meeting, or check out the conference site.

• Pfizer recalls ThermaCare HeatWraps menstrual product for safety concerns.
• October 3-9 is National Midwifery Week.
• Several good articles about pinkwashing and the monetization of breast cancer:
  • Esther Steinfeld says Stop Using Our Diseases to Sell Your Products.
  • Laurie Ruettimann criticizes pinkwashing and talks about the kind of health care awareness breast cancer really needs.
  • Laura Sells takes on that meme on Facebook: I like it without pinkwashing.
  • And Think Before You Pink has started their own blog.
• Harry Finley and his awesome Museum of Menstruation are featured at Amanda Hess’ blog.

• Elizabeth Scharpf’s outstanding work with SHE (Sustainable Health Enterprises) is featured today at Jezebel.
• The Toronto Sun reports on new research that indicates ovarian cancer may actually originate in the Fallopian tubes.
• Blogger Jayne Freeman writes about her experiences speaking openly about menstruation with her young daughters.
• Angry Feminist Doc found the perfect vagina dress at The Gap. (Scroll down for photo.)
• And you have added Gayle Sulik’s blog, Pink Ribbon Blues, created in support of her new book by the same name, to your regular reading list, haven’t you?

from MenstruationSkateboards.com

• More evidence that “abortion trauma syndrome” is a political label, not a clinical one: new research finds that teens who have abortions are no more likely to experience depression or self-esteem problems than than those who keep the pregnancy.
• Jezebel identifies 14 famous merkins (pubic hair wigs).
• Sociological Images reports an artist developed an installation titled “Menstruation Skateboards” for the Secession Museum in Austria, re-framing menstruation for the purpose of marketing skateboards. Some of the mock ads feature bruised and bloody women with the slogan, “Some girls bleed more than once a month”. And what’s a skateboard company without a clothing line? (See photo at right.)
• It Gets Better: Technically, this isn’t a women’s health link, but it’s an awesome project. After learning of another gay teen who committed suicide after years of homophobic bullying, Dan Savage and his partner launched this project as online support system for LGBT kids.

• Ms. Magazine blog reports on crisis pregnancy centers using the lure of free pizza to attract women to fake clinics.
• Rodent research shows promise for treatment of premature ovarian failure with stem cells.
• Dozens of television stations (more than 100, by some counts) have rejected ads for “Zestra”, a blend of botanical oils and extracts that promises to enhance sexual arousal for women. Double standard, much?
• Researchers at University of California-Irvine are seeking women over 18 to talk about their attitudes toward cosmetic surgery on female genitalia.
• Newsweek mentioned us in their article about period-tracking apps for smartphones.
• Mandy Nolan introduces Ray Moynihan’s new book, Sex, Lies, and Pharmaceuticals.