"To Take Menstrual Leave, Take Off Your Pants" University Rules Cause Uproar in China.. Said to Be as Painful as Childbirth [Health Talk]

[Financial News] A university in China has sparked outrage after it was revealed that female students seeking menstrual leave were required to submit a medical certificate or "take off their pants to prove it."

According to the South China Morning Post (SCMP) on the 26th, a female student, Ms. A, from Beijing Institute of Technology's Gongdan Campus, claimed, "When I applied for sick leave, I was asked by the school clinic to take off my clothes to confirm if I was menstruating."

In a video posted by Ms. A, she asked a school staff member, "Do all women have to take off their pants to get sick leave?" The staff member replied, "Basically, yes," adding, "It's not my personal rule, it's the school's regulation."

When Ms. A requested written evidence of the rule, the staff member said nothing and told her to "go to the hospital to get a sick leave certificate."

As the video spread and controversy grew, the school issued a statement the next day, saying, "According to our investigation, the hospital staff followed appropriate procedures," and "after inquiring about the student's health condition and obtaining consent, additional diagnosis was conducted. No equipment or physical examination was used."

They added, "This regulation is to prevent abuse of sick leave and has been in place for a long time," noting, "One student requested sick leave four to five times a month. The school has its reasons for implementing such a policy."

Ms. A later posted another video stating that she successfully obtained the necessary documents after visiting the hospital. In the video, she said, "I am merely requesting a reasonable and polite policy for women to request menstrual leave."

She emphasized, "If there is indeed a written regulation at the school requiring female students to show menstrual blood to a doctor to take sick leave, I will delete my video. However, if there is no such rule, I will not back down."

Upon hearing this news, netizens expressed their shock, saying, "This practice is absurd and humiliating," "Do I have to defecate in front of the school doctor to get leave if I have diarrhea?" "It clearly violates the privacy of female students," and "It's too humiliating."

One netizen claimed, "You could request sick leave four to five times a month due to menstrual pain. I had a chronic fatigue period where I menstruated for 50 consecutive days."



Menstrual pain is a common gynecological symptom that occurs in about 50% of women of childbearing age. It is caused by increased production of prostaglandin in the endometrium.

It is divided into 'primary dysmenorrhea,' which shows periodic pain during menstruation without any special abnormal signs in the pelvis, and 'secondary dysmenorrhea,' which is associated with pathological changes in the pelvis.

Primary dysmenorrhea usually occurs for the first time within 1-2 years after menarche when ovulation begins regularly and can last for 2-3 days. It is a common symptom in women in their teens and twenties but can persist into their forties.

The cause is excessive contraction of the uterine muscles, similar to labor pains during childbirth. Pain in the coccyx (sacral vertebrae) area may be accompanied, and the pain may radiate to the front thighs. Symptoms such as vomiting, nausea, and diarrhea may occur simultaneously, and in rare cases, fainting may occur. The pain in primary dysmenorrhea is colicky, unlike pain caused by inflammation in the abdominal cavity, and can often be alleviated by pelvic massage or physical activity.

Secondary dysmenorrhea usually occurs within a few years after menarche. The pain begins 1-2 weeks before the start of menstruation and can last for several days after the menstrual bleeding ends.

The causes of secondary dysmenorrhea are varied, but it is usually due to abnormal signs in the pelvic cavity, such as blockage of the cervix, the formation of lumps in the uterus, or reactions caused by foreign substances, leading to strong contractions of the uterine muscles and increased production of prostaglandin.

Women with secondary dysmenorrhea have abnormalities in the pelvic cavity, so unlike primary menstrual pain, they do not respond well to common painkillers (NSAIDs) or oral contraceptives.

Primary dysmenorrhea can be effectively treated with painkillers. Painkillers are used to inhibit the production of prostaglandin, a substance that causes pain by inducing uterine contractions. Painkillers should be taken regularly 6-8 hours apart, starting just before or after the onset of menstrual pain.


Secondary dysmenorrhea is fundamentally associated with pathological changes in the pelvic cavity, so unlike primary menstrual pain, which is mainly treated with painkillers, the treatment involves addressing the pathological symptoms in the pelvic cavity.


moon@fnnews.com Moon Young-jin Reporter