Most of us have engaged in the verbal debate at some point. Most likely over a game of beer pong, when a guy makes that common assumption that boys are simply tougher than girls. We then launch into defense mode, listing off reasons why women are a hundred times tougher than men. It always ends in the same statement: “well men don’t have to go through labor!”

End of fight. (Hopefully you sink your next throw to send the point home).

An Australian TV anchor wanted to end this feud once and for all so he agreed to be put into simulated labor (with a machine that sends electric currents through the abdomen which feel like contraction pains). Needless to say, after only three hours he called it quits (mind you, most women are in labor for an average of 10-12 hours), concluding, “Women win. Men don’t.”

Finally, we are getting the credit we deserve. But honestly, we knew he never stood a chance. Of course men can’t handle labor! They can’t handle most of the things women put up with on a daily or monthly basis. Men could never handle being women, period. Read More »

Some gals just don’t want to jump on board the tampon boat or the pad barge when it comes down to periods. Is that such a crime? Alternative menstrual products are something that all ladies should be well-versed in, and yet many of us aren’t. Did you even know there were alternatives?

Well, I’m here to tell you.

Disposable menstrual products are terrible for our environment and they’re terrible for our wallets, too. Why buy them if there are other options?

1. The Cup

The menstrual cup is a safe and effective replacement for the tampon that doesn’t create all the waste. It is made of rubber or silicone and worn inside the vagina just like a tampon. Cups are so safe that no health risks have been found related to their use (unlike tampons). You may never have heard of them, but this option has been on the market since 1932! It’s not the most well-known product, but many women swear by them. Brands that make them: DivaCup, FemmeCup, Keeper, LadyCup, Lunette, MiaCup, Mpowercup, Mooncup, and Softcup. Read More »

Now that half my friends are on a diet, thanks to effing New Years, I have to share something with y’all. You know that bathroom scale that you get on every morning? It’s lying to you. You heard me. It’s lying. So, everyone can just stop freaking out about what it told you this morning, because it probably isn’t true.

There are a multitude of factors, from water consumption to plain old hormones, that can artificially – and temporarily – affect that ever important number on the scale, anywhere from 1-5 pounds in a day.

#1. Water water water.

Water can affect your weight in a couple of ways: drinking too much, and not enough. As a substance, water is pretty heavy, so if you drink a couple big glasses, you’ll see an immediate impact on your weight. On the other hand, dehydration can also lead to a higher number, because it causes the body to retain what water it does have (it thinks there’s a draught or something?). Our bodies are made of 60% water, so any changes in that arena are going to have a noticeable impact overall.

#2 Food

This one seems so obvious, but people sometimes forget that food weighs as much in your stomach as it does on your plate, at least initially. Take that into account when you step on the scale, or better yet, wait ’til you’ve digested before you get anywhere near it. Read More »

[October is Breast Cancer awareness month, so CollegeCandy thought it was important to bring you all the information you need to protect yourself. Come back tomorrow for more important facts about prevention, therapy and other knowledge to keep you healthy.]

While breast cancer is uncommon in women under the age of 35, the risk of it increases as a woman grows older. There is also some evidence to suggest that young African American women are at greater risk for breast cancer than young Caucasian women. No matter who you are, you will be affected by breast cancer during the course of your life in one way or another.

Here’s what you need to know to protect yourself now.

Get In Touch Regularly

Mammography screening is the best available method to detect breast cancer, but due to the high levels of radiation, doctors don’t recommend them to people under the age of 40. Your next best bet? Clinical and self examination.

The American Cancer Society urges women in their 20s and 30s to have a clinical breast exam (CBE) as a part of their regular professional health exam. The most common signs of breast cancer are a lump in the breast, abnormal thickening of the breast, or a change in the shape or color of the breast. Keep in mind that finding a lump does not necessarily mean you have breast cancer. If you notice something abnormal, talk to your doctor ASAP. Read More »

It’s the start of a new week and already I feel haggard and exhausted. My moods are swinging like a particularly feisty pendulum and my breasts ache. It can only mean one thing: my good friend PMS is on the horizon.

The beginnings of some minor stomach cramps, an increased feeling of self-consciousness and a patience threshold shorter than my small toe surface like clockwork once a month, warning me of impending pain and the cycle of womanhood.

Thankfully I am not alone, basking in the dull glory of 90% of menstruating women who currently experience some form of Pre-Menstrual Syndrome. There are at least a hundred symptoms, though women experience a mix of just a few. The most common include irritability, loss of confidence, poor concentration, crying for no particular reason and the infamous mood swings, as feared by boyfriends and spouses the world over.

I myself am prone to similar experiences as mentioned above, along with an unpleasant notion of feeling like a beached whale and wishing my bedroom were the sea and my bed the sand, so I could waddle on my belly to bask in comfort and perhaps make a few guessed interpretations of what I would consider to be whale groans. Read More »

It remains a vivid memory in my mind — the moment I learned about masturbation. I was 11, sitting in the backseat of our minivan on the way home from my grandparents house.

It was dark out and I was using my booklight to read my newest purchase “Letters to Judy Blume.” It was the moment I finally understood that these shameful feelings, these urges, well they weren’t bad at all. I kept looking at the reflection in the mirror, thinking someone could tell what I had discovered.

There were a lot of things I wouldn’t have learned without Judy Blume: that young girls sometimes explore each other, that masturbation is normal, that getting your period is something worth praying for and that sex between young lovers doesn’t always end with horrible consequences.

So why, WHY are people still trying to censor the women that taught our generation so much? Why are people so skeptical of letting their children learn about menstruation, masturbation and sex from books? Read More »

This is awesome! Women smell better when they are menstruating.

UT – Austin surveyed 52 men who were asked to test the scent of 18 worn t-shirts worn by women in various phases of their menstrual cycle. Almost all of the guys in the experiment, 1 guy was gay – so his doesn’t really count, found the shirts worn during the girl’s period to be the most enticing.

Sadly, this is when a woman is least fertile…therefore, least likely to get pregnant.

But, when Aunt Flow comes over to stay no one is really excited to jump into bed anyway…

So, other than all those religious fundementalists who think womens’ ovulation is dirty and unnatural, every other man thinks it is when we are at our sexiest.

The question is, how eager are WE to have sex during our period?

Oh, menstruation.

Not a lot of people like to talk about it. Girls are pissed off at having to deal with it, and guys are either skeeved out or completely in the dark about it.

A few years (like oh, 40 or so) ago, the cartoonists at Disney realized what a bad rap menstruation was getting. They decided it was their duty to help kids out everywhere. And so they made an animated short. All about periods. Read More »