Women face extra challenges during China’s gaokao; many use contraceptives to delay periods

As China’s Gaokao, or national college entrance exam, fell on June 7 to 10 this year, the bigger challenge that female candidates face during the test is receiving increasing attention online.Gaokao is an exam that most Chinese secondary school pupils take to further their study.According to data from the China" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="144256" data-entity-type="organization">National Bureau of Statistics in China, females account for around half of the secondary school pupils in recent years.Of all the female Gaokao candidates, around 30 per cent might have their periods overlapping with sitting the exam, according to an obstetrics and gynaecology influencer nicknamed liucenglou.Female pupils, who make up a large proportion of those who sit the exam, pictured in a classroom in eastern China. Photo: Getty ImagesThese young women have been seeking contraceptives and sometimes folk remedies to postpone their periods.On social media, some shared their experience delaying periods by drinking apple vinegar. One said that she drank a glass of apple vinegar every day from two weeks ahead till the last day of the exam, and successfully postponed her period.“Menstruation has bad influence on my problem-solving abilities. I must make sure that nothing goes wrong with my exams,” she said.Some also tried mango, blueberries and durian, believing they could help delay their menstruation.Some young women believe natural remedies like fruit or apple cider vinegar, above, can help delay their periods. Photo: ShutterstockMore consumed short-acting contraceptive pills, which proved to be the most effective method. Some worried that they might have side effects, but their worries about failing in Gaokao eventually took over.One woman posted her half-empty 28-day pack of contraceptive pills on May 30, saying: “Gaokao and I have a baby.”The post went viral, with 15,000 likes and over 1,.Other women related to her experience, comforting her that short-acting contraceptive pills are sometimes prescribed to treat gynaecological diseases, and would not harm her health.A woman holds up a pack of birth control pills. Photo: Shutterstock“You can relax and focus on your exams now,” they said.Further ReadingHowever, some also talked of the failure of such methods.obstetrics and gynaecology experts also advise contraceptive pills for women to postpone periods.However, to avoid uncomfortable side-effects, they suggest that women take the pills two to three months in advance to adjust their period time.One woman, who said she has serious menstrual cramps, took contraceptive pills for a month before Gaokao to make sure her period would not affect her exam, but the pills seriously affected her hormones. They also gave her severe headaches that influenced her mental state.She said her Gaokao score was around 40 lower than her average score.Gaokao is considered by most Chinese families as the only route to success.This year, a total of 12.9 million candidates registered Gaokao, a slight drop from last year’s 13.35 million, but was still 25 per cent more than a decade ago.One less score could mean being surpassed by hundreds of students, and missing an ideal university and the career opportunities that follow.Senior pupils attend a class in northern China in preparation for crucial examinations. Photo: XinhuaThe young women’s sharing of their experience of delaying periods for Gaokao revealed the hidden gender imbalance in the life-deciding exams.It also reflects a more open attitude towards menstruation in Chinese society.The change of attitude in recent years was widely spotted when retired Chinese swimmer Fu Yuanhui frankly spoke about herself menstruating during the women’s 4x100m medley relay in the 2016 Rio Olympics.Women praised Fu for breaking of the period taboo and followed suit to openly discuss their menstruation. They also called for period pad s to stop using blue fluid, and use the correct red to recognise menstruation as a normal physiological phenomenon.“Those who do not have menstruation, or those who do not feel discomfort during their periods, would not understand how much it can influence performance for those who have menstrual pain,” said an online observer.