Author Topic: Evolution and the Hymen  (Read 11998 times)

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Offline JohnE

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Evolution and the Hymen
« on: February 03, 2012, 01:16:18 am »
My wife brought up an interesting question that I didn't have the foggiest hint of an answer for: What is the evolutionary purpose of the hymen? What survival/procreation benefit does/did it have, if any?

Offline Sylvana

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Re: Evolution and the Hymen
« Reply #1 on: February 03, 2012, 01:54:38 am »
The hymen makes it harder for an infectious agent to enter the fairly vulnerable area of the vagina and uterus. If you consider that the "purpose" of life is to procreate, then a barrier that protects the reproductive organs of the female (which can be pretty easily infected and damaged) until reproduction occurs would be a natural survival advantage. In a significantly less sanitary environment a young female without a hymen would be at a higher risk of infection that would very likely result in sterility before reaching reproductive age.

Offline Vene

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Re: Evolution and the Hymen
« Reply #2 on: February 03, 2012, 09:35:08 am »
The hymen makes it harder for an infectious agent to enter the fairly vulnerable area of the vagina and uterus. If you consider that the "purpose" of life is to procreate, then a barrier that protects the reproductive organs of the female (which can be pretty easily infected and damaged) until reproduction occurs would be a natural survival advantage. In a significantly less sanitary environment a young female without a hymen would be at a higher risk of infection that would very likely result in sterility before reaching reproductive age.
I actually did a quick search of the literature and I found a total of one relevant paper. It does mention the possibility of it being due to infection. But, I really, really question its value as it mentions the absolutely asinine "aquatic ape" hypothesis of human origins. That said, the paper also suggests a possible embryological origin as well as it being due to sexual selection where only women with a hymen were desired by men in the past (the hymen being an indicator of virginity). Unfortunately, there really is not any real data for any of the hypotheses and no paper citing this one talking about the origin of the hymen and looking for related articles only yields papers about hymen reconstruction.

So, John, I guess that's where we're at, it's not known. There are some ideas such as infection control, sexual selection, and a developmental byproduct. But, ultimately, I can't tell you.

Offline Old Viking

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Re: Evolution and the Hymen
« Reply #3 on: February 03, 2012, 03:20:29 pm »
I grew up in a really tough neighborhood with a guy named Louie Hymen.  He ran a bookie parlor that was a front for a candy store.
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Offline Cataclysm

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Re: Evolution and the Hymen
« Reply #4 on: February 03, 2012, 04:03:55 pm »
f'real?
I'd be more sympathetic if people here didn't act like they knew what they were saying when they were saying something very much wrong.

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Offline Witchyjoshy

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Re: Evolution and the Hymen
« Reply #5 on: February 04, 2012, 12:44:20 am »
Isn't it possible that it might exist as a form of genital war?

That is, if a male's dick can't penetrate a female's hymen, then he is considered too weak to procreate or something like that.

I dunno, I'm basing this off of ducks.
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Offline Shane for Wax

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Re: Evolution and the Hymen
« Reply #6 on: February 04, 2012, 01:16:19 am »
I personally stand by the theory it didn't evolve for sexual reasons but rather for the infant's safety. It's much easier to clean a male's genitalia than it is a female's. The hymen is thus in place to keep foreign matter out (fecal, dirt, diseases, whathaveyou). As a female gets older they learn how to clean themselves thus the hymen becomes less necessary to have intact.

I can't see it being a reliable gauge of virginity considering a recent study showed 52% of a group of adolescent girls having an intact, non-disrupted hymen after first sexual intercourse. Though some have claimed that it can also let a man know that he was the first to have sexual intercourse with the woman, the evidence suggests that isn't always the case. However, the fact that it wasn't broken during intercourse may lend more towards the theory that it is there for protection against foreign bodies. A more elastic hymen is thus more desired than one that breaks just by strenuous exercise (as can happen and has been documented).

I could of course be wrong. And nobody really knows for certain. If they say they do they're probably lying through their teeth. It is ranked up there with the mystery of the Vermiform appendix (which also has multiple theories as to why we have it).

Reference: Adams, J.A., Botash, A.S., & Kellogg, N. (2004). Differences in hymenal morphology between adolescent girls with and without a history of consensual sexual intercourse. Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med, 158(3): 280-285. bloop
« Last Edit: February 04, 2012, 01:18:12 am by Shane for Wax »

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Offline Lithp

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Re: Evolution and the Hymen
« Reply #7 on: February 04, 2012, 02:59:21 am »
Quote
I can't see it being a reliable gauge of virginity considering a recent study showed 52% of a group of adolescent girls having an intact, non-disrupted hymen after first sexual intercourse.

I did not even know this was possible.

Though the fact that it's only around 50% leads me to believe that if the trait was ever selected for, it has been irrelevent for some time now.

Offline Shane for Wax

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Re: Evolution and the Hymen
« Reply #8 on: February 04, 2012, 08:32:18 pm »
I agree that it is mostly irrelevant now.

There are portions of our bodies that are just 'leftover materials' (or vestigal structures) that don't get evolved out. We may have evolved past the needs but Evolution found no reason to make that part of the body completely disappear. This is usually linked to the fact that it is neither completely detrimental nor exceptionally advantageous. So it is just left there. Why make more work when it can just sit there on a shelf? Evolution can be considered 'lazy' that way.

But there is also the fact that such structures may have multiple functions. So while Function A is no longer needed Function B is still needed so thus the structure stays even if another organ does the work as well. And for some structures we don't fully understand them. So we could be oblivious to the appendix's multi-use function. Even if the appendix does have multi-uses removing it does not seem particularly detrimental to the patient, though.

I think this might be the case for the hymen. While we have been able to introduce better ways of cleansing ourselves and our children, the hymen remains. It hasn't had time to evolve out even if it might at some point. So thus it just stays, perhaps sometimes serving its function of keeping foreign bodies out even if it is no longer a good proof of virginity.

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Offline Lithp

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Re: Evolution and the Hymen
« Reply #9 on: February 04, 2012, 08:50:21 pm »
Are there no hymens in the animal kingdom? One would think there would be an analogous structure that could give us some clues as to how it might have been used in the past.

Offline Shane for Wax

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Re: Evolution and the Hymen
« Reply #10 on: February 04, 2012, 08:57:07 pm »
chimpanzees, elephants, manatees, whales, and horses all apparently have them. But I couldn't begin to tell you about them. Maybe the chimps if I set my mind to it and studied it.

If there's someone who is more knowledgeable about the above animals then maybe they can help and I welcome their knowledge. Anything outside of primates is beyond me for the most part (unless it's wolves and snakes).
« Last Edit: February 04, 2012, 08:59:15 pm by Shane for Wax »

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Offline Smurfette Principle

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Re: Evolution and the Hymen
« Reply #11 on: February 04, 2012, 10:56:58 pm »
Hymens aren't anything like we think they are. That article says they're probably vestigial, left over from fetal development.

Offline Lithp

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Re: Evolution and the Hymen
« Reply #12 on: February 04, 2012, 11:37:26 pm »
Whatever that is, my computer won't open it.

Offline Random Gal

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Re: Evolution and the Hymen
« Reply #13 on: February 04, 2012, 11:48:47 pm »
chimpanzees, elephants, manatees, whales, and horses all apparently have them. But I couldn't begin to tell you about them. Maybe the chimps if I set my mind to it and studied it.

If there's someone who is more knowledgeable about the above animals then maybe they can help and I welcome their knowledge. Anything outside of primates is beyond me for the most part (unless it's wolves and snakes).

Elephants and manatees are so distantly related to all the other mammals above that it's likely a primitive condition for most placental mammals.

Which means it's been around anywhere from the Late Jurassic to the Early Paleocene depending on phylogeny, so it's unlikely to be vestigial.
« Last Edit: February 04, 2012, 11:50:53 pm by Random Guy »

Offline JohnE

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Re: Evolution and the Hymen
« Reply #14 on: February 04, 2012, 11:51:51 pm »
chimpanzees, elephants, manatees, whales, and horses all apparently have them.
Oh, she asked about that too, but I forgot. Thanks.