Dear Betty,
This may sound like a bizarre question, but my surfer girl daughter recently got her period. Do we need to be worried about sharks?
—Paranoid Mother in Redondo
Dear Paranoid Mom,
I would love to put all your fears to rest, but after consulting with George Burgess, a shark expert out of Florida, I learned that sharks can most certainly detect menstrual blood and even urine (oh no!). Rest assured, when it comes to sharks threatening surfers, your main concern should be locations and not that time of the month. If you are a surfer in any of the shark "hot zones" such as Florida, South Africa, or Australia, you should take some precautions. It's best to refrain from surfing on your heaviest days and to wear a tampon on other days. Sharks don't only come out when you have your period, though, so you need to be cautious any time of the month. Surf in groups, don't surf at dawn or dusk (regular shark feeding times)—and if you see a shark, for goodness sake, get out of the water. In non-sharky areas, you shouldn't be alarmed; what seems like a recent increase in shark attacks can be attributed most to media coverage and the increase of people in the water. In Southern California, you should be more worried about your daughter getting hit on by the sharky guys out in the water!
Enjoy the ride,
Betty
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