A colour will help us talk openly about the menstrual cycle

Jan 16, 2021

A new colour thought up by colour company Pantone might help us break the greatest taboo concerning a woman’s body: a colour that will make people (including men) have open conversations about a taboo issue, which we think should no longer be a taboo.

The new shade of red was presented not long ago, following the request of Swedish health brand Intimina, which sought the collaboration of the colour company that devised the “Pantone Matching System” (the international standard colour base adopted for managing colours in a number of industries, including the industrial-chemical one).

It comes as no surprise that the new shade of red – specifically created to shatter the stigma enveloping the menstrual cycle and to promote a positive conversation about the menstrual cycle via a global campaign that aims to give more visibility to the menstrual cycle and to normalise the general perception of this bodily function – has been named “Period”.

The colour was created based on the research published in Medical News Today, thanks to a team that included a gynaecologist too. The goal was not that of accurately representing the colour of period blood, but that of achieving a visual identifier that helps positively exploit the power of colour to share one’s own story.

Thus, the new red adds to Pantone’s spectrum of 2,652 colours. According to Laurie Pressman (vice president of Pantone Color Institute), the new shade “emboldens people who menstruate to feel proud of who they are. To own their period with self-assurance; to stand up and passionately celebrate the exciting and powerful life force they are born with. To urge everyone, regardless of gender, to feel comfortable to talk spontaneously and openly about this pure and natural bodily function”. Meanwhile, Intimina has made a donation to ActionAid, whose Director of Policy, Advocacy and Programmes, Jillian Popkins, reminds everyone that some girls actually don’t go to school when they’re on their period – and not because of the pain, but because of the shame they are made to feel.