There's been a lot of conversation revolving around tampons lately. Their material components have been brought under scrutiny, and the negative environmental impact of the disposal of plastic applicators have been the subject of many-a-discussion. Everyone is talking about tampons.

　　近来人们一直在谈论关于卫生棉的一些话题。人们对卫生棉所用材料的成分实施了严格的检查，而其可降解塑料质棉棒对环境的负面影响已经成为了人们讨论的主题。现在每个人都在谈论卫生棉。

　　The truth is however, tampons have been around for a long, long time. Civilizations dating back to the ancient Greeks have recorded evidence that women used homemade tampon-like devices. Which is interesting ... because I think we all have a story from our mothers about how they had to buckle in their giant maxi-pads which caused them to wobble on their bikes and show off embarrassing bulges in their underpants.So before you say goodbye to tampons, enjoy some interesting facts you probably didn't know about their history.

　　然而，真实情况是，卫生棉已经存在很长、很长一段时间了。追溯到古希腊文明，记录显示那时的妇女使用自制类似卫生棉的东西。真是太有意思了，因为我想我们的妈妈们都跟我们说过她们是怎样无奈地垫上超大块的卫生棉，弄得在自行车上坐不稳，小内内还鼓起来，尴尬极了。所以，在你跟卫生棉说再见之前，好好看看你可能不知道的关于它历史有趣事实吧。

　　"La, la, la, la, la, la, la, sheets of Egyptian cotton"

　　“啦啦啦啦啦啦啦啦，埃及棉质床单”

　　Ancient Egyptian women used softened papyrus to absorb their menstruation. Though it might sound like quite a process for us busy women, it was just something they were used to making.

　　古埃及妇女用软化过的纸莎草纸招待大姨妈。尽管听起来像是我们繁忙女性的一大进步，但这只是她们习惯做的东西而已。

　　Ouch, just ouch

　　疼，真心疼

　　Women in ancient Greece used slim planks of wood wrapped in lint as tampons. I can't imagine a worse place to get a splinter.

　　古希腊的妇女用棉绒包住一些薄木片当卫生棉用。我无法想象诸如(薄木片)上面有根刺这样更糟糕的情况了。

　　Bahhhh

　　噗

　　The Roman women used sheep's wool. It was accessible and absorbent.

　　罗马妇女用羊毛(当做姨妈巾)。羊毛当时易得，吸收性还很好。

　　Paper cuts

　　剪纸

　　Japanese women used folded paper. I imagine it was softer than the kind of paper we know.

　　日本妇女将硬纸折起来(当姨妈巾)。我想应该比我们知道的那种硬纸要软。

　　One with nature

　　纯天然原材料

　　Women in Asia and parts of Africa used rolled plants and grasses. They weren't particularly absorbent but they did block the flow.

　　亚洲女性和一部分非洲女性将植物和草卷起来。这些东西吸收性并不会特别得好，但确实可以“截流”。

　　It wasn't always this easy to use

　　其实并不是一直都那么好用

　　Tampons as we know them which come with a removable, disposable applicator did not come around until the 20th century.

　　我们知道的可卸、可降解的棉块直到20世纪才出现。

　　During WWII, tampon sales hit a high

　　二战期间，姨妈巾价格卖出一个新高度

　　During the war, women were taking over men's jobs and working long hours. The tampon became a tool for the working woman. It allowed her to be mobile and not chained to the bathroom.

　　二战期间，妇女们做着男人们的工作，工作时间很长。姨妈巾成为了工作女性的一个工具。能够让自己自由活动还不用被迫去上厕所。

　　It took a long time to get tampons on television

　　把姨妈巾弄上电视花了很长时间

　　Up until the 1970s, tampons were not publicly broadcasted. When the National Association of Broadcasters Code Authority approved Tampax for televised advertisements, they were everywhere.

　　20世纪70年代，姨妈巾还没有在电视上播出过。当全国广播代码授权协会许可丹碧斯月经棉塞上电视打广告时，姨妈巾就到处都可以看到了。

　　It beat out every other menstruation product

　　姨妈巾"技压"群雄(其他月经产品)

　　Over 70 percent of women in the United States use tampons as their menstruation method of choice. Statistically, women will use 17,000 tampons in their life time. The more you know!

　　在美国，超过70%的女性在经期都选择使用卫生棉。数据显示，女性一生会用一万七千多个姨妈巾!

　　更多精彩内容 >> 新东方网英语频道 

　　全国新东方英语课程搜索

（编辑：何莹莹）