question for females: do you swim in the ocean when menstruating?

I am vacationing in Waves, NC on the outer banks this week. What a lovely beach it is - the beach is uncrowded, pristine and has huge sand dunes. The waves in the ocean are also huge due to Hurricane Bertha. They are saying a high risk of rip tides all week!

The soundside looks to be very accessible and I was thinking of trying to get in an open water swim there. Bad timing tho, as I just started my menstrual period. Blah! Does anyone else worry about sharks while menstruating?

I googled "menstrual blood shark" and found this article saying that there is no increased risk of attacks on menstruating women. I don't believe it tho. They are basing that conclusion on the fact that more men are attacked by sharks than women. But that's because more men participate in sports that put them at risk.

If you think about it, during any given race triathlon race, there's got to be a small percentage of women who are menstruating. So, we are all shark bait =:-O


Edited by keyone 2008-07-13 7:35 AM