# So why are women so disgusted by oral sex during periods? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [April 4, 2012, 7:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-why-are-women-so-disgusted-by-oral-sex-during-periods/617787 "2012-04-04T07:26:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Larry\_Mudd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f14d63/32.png) [@Larry\_Mudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Mudd)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2012, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-why-are-women-so-disgusted-by-oral-sex-during-periods/617787/41 "2012-04-04T23:25:53Z")
> [@DiosaBellissima](#): > > I work actively to keep things cleaned up and moving along while on my period so nobody has to smell anything from me, but the stuff itself does have a definitive smell to it. That’s irony. ---
**Author:** ![DiosaBellissima](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a8b319/32.png) [@DiosaBellissima](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DiosaBellissima)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2012, 11:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-why-are-women-so-disgusted-by-oral-sex-during-periods/617787/42 "2012-04-04T23:29:34Z")
> [@Larry\_Mudd](#): > > That’s irony. What exactly is ironic about that? A woman can take lots of showers, clean herself up regularly, change her pad or tampon hourly, but the point remains that the actual fluid has a smell to it. Minimizing harms and all that. ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Mudd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f14d63/32.png) [@Larry\_Mudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Mudd)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2012, 11:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-why-are-women-so-disgusted-by-oral-sex-during-periods/617787/43 "2012-04-04T23:46:11Z")
> [@DiosaBellissima](#): > > What exactly is ironic about that? That smell - it’s irony. _Distinctly_ irony. ---
**Author:** ![Rachellelogram](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rachellelogram/32/8689_2.png) [@Rachellelogram](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rachellelogram)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2012, 11:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-why-are-women-so-disgusted-by-oral-sex-during-periods/617787/44 "2012-04-04T23:51:46Z")
Don’t feel bad Larry, I got it right away. hee! ---
**Author:** ![ladyfoxfyre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ad7895/32.png) [@ladyfoxfyre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ladyfoxfyre)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2012, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-why-are-women-so-disgusted-by-oral-sex-during-periods/617787/45 "2012-04-05T00:08:37Z")
Haha. Irony. ---
**Author:** ![MsWhatsit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/eb8c5e/32.png) [@MsWhatsit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MsWhatsit)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2012, 12:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-why-are-women-so-disgusted-by-oral-sex-during-periods/617787/46 "2012-04-05T00:13:58Z")
> [@Larry\_Mudd](#): > > That smell - it’s irony. _Distinctly_ irony. It took me so long to get this that by the time it finally dawned on me, the Humor Police had shown up at my door to demand my card back. Thanks for nothing. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2012, 12:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-why-are-women-so-disgusted-by-oral-sex-during-periods/617787/47 "2012-04-05T00:27:20Z")
I got it. But I will disagree with the charge that menstrual fluid smells bad. Menstrual fluid collected on paper pulp and then put into a trash can smells bad. Menstrual fluid collected in a DivaCup and flushed down the toilet doesn’t smell bad at all. It’s the icky paper pulp that accelerates and amplifies the rotting, festering smell. …but that’s fodder for the recurring DivaCup cheerleading thread, so I’ll stop now. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Barrett\_Bonden](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/5e9695/32.png) [@Barrett\_Bonden](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Barrett_Bonden)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2012, 12:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-why-are-women-so-disgusted-by-oral-sex-during-periods/617787/48 "2012-04-05T00:58:32Z")
> [@Ibanez](#): > > You a vampire by chance ? I’m a dude, and would never go down there during that “period” of time. I think I remember Lestat vacuuming out a lady friend during her time of the month in some Anne Rice novel. I remember being very jealous after I read it. ---
**Author:** ![MsWhatsit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/eb8c5e/32.png) [@MsWhatsit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MsWhatsit)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2012, 12:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-why-are-women-so-disgusted-by-oral-sex-during-periods/617787/49 "2012-04-05T00:59:57Z")
> [@WhyNot](#): > > Menstrual fluid collected in a DivaCup and flushed down the toilet doesn’t smell bad at all. My experience differs. ---
**Author:** ![Colophon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f05b48/32.png) [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2012, 1:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-why-are-women-so-disgusted-by-oral-sex-during-periods/617787/50 "2012-04-05T01:19:38Z")
There was a young vampire named Mabel With periods highly unstable One night at full moon She sat down with a spoon And drank herself under the table. ---
**Author:** ![missred](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/missred/32/14096_2.png) [@missred](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/missred)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2012, 1:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-why-are-women-so-disgusted-by-oral-sex-during-periods/617787/51 "2012-04-05T01:43:00Z")
Most of the time when Aunt Flo visits, I’m achy, tender and smelly ( **DB** is right, there’s a distinct odor). This doesn’t even factor in bloated and constipated. I don’t even want to be in the same bed with my man. A couple of days before or after: I’m game for the sexual olympics. It evens out in the end. Disclaimer: Not all women feel like this for a few days a month, but it’s been my experience. ---
**Author:** ![Bambro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/df705f/32.png) [@Bambro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bambro)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2012, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-why-are-women-so-disgusted-by-oral-sex-during-periods/617787/52 "2012-04-05T03:17:10Z")
Holy Shit this thread is funny as fuck. Gross as hell, but funny as fuck. Thanks y’all. and BTW…I would never, ever, ever even think about getting my redwings. ::BLEH:: ---
**Author:** ![Imago](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/85e7bf/32.png) [@Imago](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Imago)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2012, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-why-are-women-so-disgusted-by-oral-sex-during-periods/617787/53 "2012-04-05T19:37:42Z")
Well, as a 20 y/o woman with nine years of cramp-free, headache-free, backache-free, presumably PMS-free etc etc periods under her belt (hah), I’d have considerable trouble relating to any girlfriend who adamantly declined most or all sex during her period. If it’s specific to oral sex I might not understand, but I wouldn’t think much of it. The smell, while distinctive and not-delicious, really doesn’t bother me all that much (pretty much the same way I view the smell of pot, or mothballs). And pretending I were straight, I’d be downright offended by any boyfriend who acted like periods were gross and shameful- I sure as hell wouldn’t expect them to eat me out, but if he’s making disgusted faces, refusing sex altogether or saying things to the effect of how I should go to greater lengths to hide the evidence (tampons or pads etc) the relationship could end up on the chopping block pretty damn quick. Actually, I had no trouble casually answering a male friend’s question about what age I started menstruating at a while back, though he apologized profusely before he asked it, and I frequently get complaints from other girls about their cramps asking me how the hell I have none. It probably has a lot to do, not necessarily with media indoctrination (though I’m sure that has a hand in everything, including period-land), but with differences in parenting. I had a single father, no mother, no siblings and most of my father’s family was, well, pretty stereotypically manly. Now we all know if there’s any _inherent_ difference between the sexes, it’s how we torture our friends as kids- girls say “This movie’s sad, watch it!” and boys say, “This sock reeks, smell it!” 😛 It was never something you just have to silently endure in my house, more like, “High five! You’ve survived to puberty. You and your friends will be freeloading beer off me soon!” ---
**Author:** ![Arrendajo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Arrendajo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arrendajo)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2012, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-why-are-women-so-disgusted-by-oral-sex-during-periods/617787/54 "2012-04-05T19:52:19Z")
> [@CarnalK](#): > > Yes, in Eastern and African society going down on menstruating women is quite sought after. It cures AIDS, I think. Oh that’s just silly. It is, however, an important source of protein in many developing countries. ---
**Author:** ![Spice\_Weasel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spice_weasel/32/5435_2.png) [@Spice\_Weasel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spice_Weasel)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2012, 10:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-why-are-women-so-disgusted-by-oral-sex-during-periods/617787/55 "2012-04-05T22:45:57Z")
> [@Ellen\_Cherry](#): > > It is beyond me why this is even a question. Geez. The idea of my mouth coming into contact with blood freaks me out. The idea of someone else’s mouth coming into contact with _blood coming out of my vagina_ is so far up the freak-o-meter I can’t see it. Having a period feels gross. And when I’m on my period, I feel gross. I can barely contemplate being seen in public much less having sex. Not because I’m ashamed or have body issues, but because I don’t like to bleed into my underwear. Crotch bleeding is about as sexy as a hemorrhoid. As the Onion says, It’s that ‘‘time of the month’’ where I’m ‘‘not at my best’’ because my ‘‘vagina is bleeding.’’ If people want to go for it, fine, but yeah, ick. ---
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2012, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-why-are-women-so-disgusted-by-oral-sex-during-periods/617787/56 "2012-04-05T23:05:18Z")
> [@Colophon](#): > > There was a young vampire named Mabel > With periods highly unstable > One night at full moon > She sat down with a spoon > And drank herself under the table. A-hahahahahahaha! That was _awesome_! Thanks for the helluva laugh. ---
**Author:** ![Lasciel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e79b87/32.png) [@Lasciel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lasciel)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2012, 11:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-why-are-women-so-disgusted-by-oral-sex-during-periods/617787/57 "2012-04-05T23:06:38Z")
> [@Barrett\_Bonden](#): > > I think I remember \*\*\*Lestat vacuuming out a lady friend during her time of the month \*\*\*in some Anne Rice novel. I remember being very jealous after I read it. (emphasis added) :eek: There needs to be a smiley for the reaction somewhere between :snerk: and :hurl: Also, I am philosophically in \*\*WhyNot’s \*\*camp, and physically in \*\*olives’ \*\*camp. Whatever floats your boat and all (and I’ve tried both sex and oral during that time with all of my boyfriends/current husband just to try and see if it was earthshattering - it wasn’t) … but overall, that is not really a “Lasciel feels sexy” time of month. It is, in fact, just about as far opposite of “sexy” as I’m capable of feeling. That one day right BEFORE my period tho? Rowr. ---
**Author:** ![Jasper\_Kent](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/a9a28c/32.png) [@Jasper\_Kent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jasper_Kent)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2012, 11:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-why-are-women-so-disgusted-by-oral-sex-during-periods/617787/58 "2012-04-05T23:07:27Z")
I guess I can understand why most women(or men) don’t like the idea, but it doesn’t bother me at all. Not a specific turn-on, but I’m fine with it. The couple of women I’ve talked into letting me go down on them during that time were _ **very pleased** _ with the results. They got off on it, plus: a good orgasm can ease cramps. And no, I didn’t kiss them right afterwards. ---
**Author:** ![Pocito](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f04885/32.png) [@Pocito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pocito)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2012, 11:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-why-are-women-so-disgusted-by-oral-sex-during-periods/617787/59 "2012-04-05T23:53:22Z")
The flowering pear trees around these parts have a distinctly unpleasant odor while in bloom. After a couple glasses of wine, my friend pegged the smell: “It’s a period! It smells like a bloody vag!” she cried. We now refer to them as Menses Trees. ---
**Author:** ![Sicks\_Ate](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/258eb7/32.png) [@Sicks\_Ate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sicks_Ate)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2012, 12:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-why-are-women-so-disgusted-by-oral-sex-during-periods/617787/60 "2012-04-06T00:53:53Z")
> [@Pocito](#): > > The flowering pear trees around these parts have a distinctly unpleasant odor while in bloom. After a couple glasses of wine, my friend pegged the smell: “It’s a period! It smells like a bloody vag!” she cried. We now refer to them as Menses Trees. Don’t smell them next to a [persimmon tree](http://www.igoo.com/forums/archive/index.php/t-41578.html). [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-why-are-women-so-disgusted-by-oral-sex-during-periods/617787.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-why-are-women-so-disgusted-by-oral-sex-during-periods/617787.md?page=4)