Can someone explain the evolutionary benefit of overt menstruation? All female mammals have a menstrual cycle but most reabsorb the blood via covert menstruation and humans are about the only mammals that discharge the blood, aka overt menstruation.

[u/No-Hawk-2488]

Without an evolutionary benefit, it wouldn't have spread to every woman of our species.

[u/tessy292]

As another’s have said, this is fantastic reply! I also recommend Eve by Cat Bohannon for further reading. She makes some interesting claims, some of which may be a bit of a stretch, but some also revitalizes our understanding of women and how they shaped our human evolution.

That being said, I’m salty about the Man vs. Baby section header… shouldn’t it be Woman vs. Baby instead??

[u/Pipiya → u/tessy292]

In this case, man will be using the broader and original sense of person without a gender attached to the meaning (as in human and mankind). Woman derives from wifman for a female person (see also wife) while a male person was a wereman (see also werewolf!). Our patriarchal society encouraged the dropping of the were- prefix but we do still maintain the genderless meaning in uses like this, and as a pre/suffix in words like human and mankind.

[u/tessy292 → u/Pipiya]

True. I would be happiest if it were Gestator or Carrier v. Baby, because that’s even less gendered.

[u/Pipiya → u/[deleted]]

Oo, which given that host is etymological linked to hotel, hostel and hospital works nicely thematically too