女人在一起住月经真的会同步吗

A 1971 study claimed that the dates of housemates' periods move, then align - but that long-held belief is being challenged by evidence and new studies

一个1971年的研究声称，室友的月经期会变，然后统一 - 但是，这种观点被新的研究和一些证据推翻了。

You know what happens when women live together. They start to menstruate together. Suddenly everyone craves chocolate and runs out of tampons at the same time. Not only that, but the chosen cycle often seems to belong to the most assertive woman. Well that's biology for you - it must be pheromones or the lunar cycle or something. Evolutionary anthropologists have suggested that synchrony would prevent any one woman being monopolised by a single dominant male.

你知道，当女人住在一起会发生什么。她们都会来月经。突然，所有人都渴望巧克力，并在同一时间用完卫生巾。不仅如此，最后大家的的月经周期似乎往往会和最自信的室友同步。既然这是生来就被赋予的 - 它必须是信息素或月球周期有关。进化人类学家认为，同步将防止任何一个女人被一个占主导地位的男性垄断。

Ever since Martha McClintock, a psychologist from Harvard University, published her 1971 study of 135 female undergraduates living in a college dormitory together, it has been an accepted truth that menstrual cycles synchronise when women live together. Her study, based on an analysis of about eight cycles per woman, found that roommates and close friends saw the average number of days between the starts of their periods fall from eight or nine to five days.

自从玛莎麦克林托克，哈佛大学的心理学家，在1971研究并出版了关于135位一起住在大学宿舍女大学生的课题，它一直是一个公认的真理，即女人住一起月经周期会同步。她的研究基于对每名妇女大约八个周期的分析，研究发现，室友和密友亲历了她们月经持续的平均天数降到八，九直至五天。

A control group of randomly chosen women had cycles that remained 10 days apart from each. A study in 1999 found that 80% of women believed in the synchronising phenomenon with 70% saying that it was a pleasant experience. It's a powerful concept after all - that the empathy of women can make their periods fall in line. But is it really true?

随机选择的对照组的女性，她们月经周期都是相隔10天。在1999年的一项研究中发现，80％的女性相信同步现象， 70％的人说这是一次有意思的经历。毕竟这是一个震撼的概念， - 女性的共鸣可以使她们的月经周期统一。但是否真的如此吗？

The solution

解决办法

Well if you are one of the 80% of women who believes in synchronicity - brace yourself. It isn't a thing. Since McClintock's study there has been enough research with negative results to move menstrual synchronicity into urban mythology. Many studies have tried to replicate McClintock's findings - some have succeeded, but more have not.

那么如果你是这相信月经同步说的80％女性中的一员一 - 振作起来。这是不是一个物品。由于麦克林托克的研究后，有更多的研究给出了否定的结果，让月经同步说变成了城市童话。许多研究都试图复制麦克林托克的发现 - 一些成功了，但更多的还没有。

A study of Dogon women in west Africa, who were segregated into menstrual huts, found no synchronicity over 763 days and no effect of the moon on periods (and these were ideal test conditions, as there was no electricity).

西非的多贡妇女，被分组到月经木屋，研究历时763天却无同步现象，并且月亮对于月经没有影响（而这些测试条件很理想化，因为没有电）。

A study of 186 women in China who lived together for a year also found no synchronicity. But the researchers pointed out that the start of periods varied for women, and cycles were often variable, which could give the false impression of synchronicity. Menstrual cycles can vary from between 21 to 35 days. Stress, weight loss or illness will all disrupt periods. A study of 26 lesbian couples found no synchronicity but did find individual menstrual cycles varied by up to 10 days. So despite the internet refusing to let this myth die - you are the owner of your menstrual cycle and no friend, however close, can control it.

经过对186名住在一起的中国女性为期一年的研究发现，月经周期没有同步。但研究人员指出，月经的的开始时期各不相同，周期也不相同，它可以给人同步的假象。月经周期可能从21天到35天各不相同。压力，体重减轻或生病都会打乱周期。 对26对女同性恋情侣的研究发现，没有同步，但确实发现个体月经周期会有10天左右的变化。所以尽管互联网不想让这个神话消失 - 但你是你的月经周期的主人，没有任何朋友可以控制它，不管你们多亲近。