In Taiwan, Women Are Bestowing Magical Maxi Pads And Tampons To Get Their Childless Pals Knocked Up

We have all heard old wive’s tales on how you can best conceive a baby, but I think what they are doing in Taiwan for real doesn’t even have close to any magical fertility powers. Women with kids and pregnant women are giving their old (Unused, thank you) personal feminine protection to their childless friends as a good luck gesture in helping them conceive. Can’t get pregnant? Here! Have a box of tampons! Can’t get pregnant? Here! Have a mess of maxi pads!

From The Taipei Times:

In an unusual mixture of tradition and creativity to boost the city’s birthrate, Taipei City’s Department of Civil Affairs yesterday called on pregnant women to donate unused maxi pads or tampons that it would give out as symbols of luck to people hoping to get pregnant.
According to Taiwanese tradition, women can increase their chances of getting pregnant by obtaining unused maxi pads or tampons from pregnant women to share their luck.

I wonder how far this tradition dates back because I am pretty sure they didn’t have like, Tampaxâ„¢ brand tampons in the 1700’s. Maybe people used some sort of cloth to collect their menstrual blood (I think there is where that adorable term “on the rag” comes from) but I think in the way way back women used stuff like grass as personal feminine protection. And stayed in their rooms so they wouldn’t damage crops and cause lambs to go blind if they encountered the unclean menstruating woman.

I hope that woman in Taiwan are just wandering around with their purses stuffed with pads and tampons and throwing them at random women they see walking down the street who they suspect might wanna get pregnant. And I hope it is making a whole lot of men all uncomfy because VAGINAS AND BLOOD AND OH GOD MYSTERIOUS LADY THINGS. The birth rate in Taiwan had fallen to the world’s lowest in 2011 but has now increased in the last few years due to government programs.

(Image: matka_Wariatka/shutterstock)