De Secretis Mulierum et Virtutibus Herbarum, Lapidum et Animalium

On the Secrets of Women.

...mention original: "tiunt-" (continuation of "mention"); this refers back to the end of the previous page discussing the diet of different classes was made of poor women who consume coarse foods. Note, the author posits that in the 12th, 13th, or 14th year a woman begins to menstruate original: "menstruizare". The reason is that at this time, the heat of childhood begins to fail, and because of this, the body cannot effectively consume the nutritional moisture. Hence the verse:

Note that a woman is cleansed by means of this menstruation because the superfluous moisture recedes; if it remained, thick humors: the four vital fluids (blood, phlegm, yellow bile, and black bile) that medieval doctors believed controlled health and temperament would be released from it. Therefore, a woman is not well-suited for learning original: "disciplinam"; also implies formal study or mental discipline due to the thickness of the spirits of the brain, which block and dull the mind medieval science taught that "animal spirits" were subtle vapors in the brain responsible for thought; if these were "thickened" by excess moisture, cognitive function was believed to be impaired.

And note that sexual intercourse original: "coïtus" is beneficial to women to this extent: because the superfluous coldness is expelled and they receive heat, which tempers their coldness; the opposite is true for men. Hence, women who engage in much intercourse do not have shorter lives for that reason, unlike men. This is attested to by the nature of the sparrow, which dies because of frequent mating a common medieval belief based on Aristotle, suggesting that the sparrow's high sexual activity exhausted its "vital heat," leading to a short lifespan.

But from these things which have been said, several doubts arise. The first is whether that flow is produced by the heat of the blood or by some other means? To this it should be noted that in all women, except for those who are "corrupt," the color of the menses is blood-red original: "sanguineus" in most cases. And I say "corrupt" original: "corruptis"; in this medical context, it refers to a body suffering from diseased or imbalanced fluids in the sense of having bad and viscous humors. For in these women, the menses are often "livid," that is, of a lead-like color. And I am not speaking here of the "corruption" of chastity the loss of virginity, because regardless of whether they are virgins or have been "corrupted" sexually active, if they are of that age, they suffer the flow...