• New research suggests that it may not only be unnecessary to remove ovaries during a hysterectomy, but it could also be dangerous. Doctors found that women who have their ovaries removed face higher risk of death than those who keep their ovaries. • According to the Onion Hillary Clinton has joined the esteemed ranks of celebrity perfumers. Her new fragrance has been described as "steely, bracing, and curt, with notes of patent leather, sandalwood, and wool serge." • Nicole Marty, 25, was arrested after she crashed her car into a utility pole. Inside the car was her nine-year-old daughter. Click here to see her charming (and kind of classic) mug shot. • A new study has found that the longer women breastfeed, the less likely they are to develop heart attacks or strokes. • In efforts to address the shortage of women in science, scientists have launched the She Is An Astronomer project (SIAA). • Somali women living in Baidoa, Somalia's third largest city, have been instructed to cover up, or face jail time. The order was issued by Al-Shabaab, the radical Islamist militia that controls the city. • Scientists have discovered a key difference between human birthing and Neanderthal birthing: in Neanderthal childbirth, babies did not need to twist their heads to fit easily through the birth canal, unlike modern human babies. • Want to see a nude painting of Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi? Well, here you go. • Apparently, what type of movie you watch may affect your decision making. Fear - from watching a scary film - leads people to go along with the group, while lust encourages them to strike out alone, according to U.S. researchers. •  The great debate over sexting rages on, as lawyers struggle to decide whether or not to charge teens with possession of child pornography over the controversial images. • Ophelia's Voice has launched a new letter writing project that asks both girls and women to send in letters about their hopes for the future and their reflections on the past. • Sick of twee movies starring Micheal Cera? Then you might just hate this trailer for Paper Heart a new mockumentary starring comedian Charlyne Yi about the true meaning of love. • Daniel Andreas San Diego has become the first animal rights activist to make the FBI's "Most Wanted Terrorists" list. •  Graffiti tagger Danielle Bremner (aka "Utah") has been sentenced to six months in prison for tagging trains in New York. • A (no shit) study found that breakdancing is a high risk activity. • Tragic: another 11-year-old boy has committed suicide because of homophobic bullying. Jaheem Herrera hanged himself after being relentlessly taunted by boys at school. • Police fear that Melissa Huckaby may have abducted a 7-year-old girl last January, who went missing after being spotted with Huckaby in a park. The girl was later returned to her family, but they found that she had been drugged. • 

Hysterectomies are the second most common surgical procedure for women of reproductive age (the first being cesarean sections). By the age of 60, nearly a third of all American woman will have had the surgery. It is estimated that 600,000 hysterectomies are performed in the U.S. each year, giving America one of the highest hysterectomy rates. Some argue that American doctors are way too likely to chose a hysterectomy over alternative procedures, and that up to two thirds of the women who received hysterectomies did not actually need them.

There is also some debate among doctors over what exactly needs to be removed during a hysterectomy. While most doctors remove the cervix along with the uterus, experts assert that doing so may increase the risk of damage to the bladder and nearby nerves. Just as important is the possibility that preserving the cervix may allow many women to enjoy better post-procedure sex lives:

Some researchers believe that for at least some women, the cervix may contribute to sexual pleasure; doctors also say leaving it in place makes it easier to avoid unwittingly shortening the vaginal canal. A 212-patient Finnish study from 1983 found pain upon intercourse pre-hysterectomy was better relieved by a cervix-sparing procedure. A parallel study, involving the same women, found the frequency of orgasms decreased in women who had their cervix removed but not in those who didn't.

However, these claims are not without controversy. Some doctors still believe that there is no solid reason to spare the cervix, and that removing the cervix can help patients avoid cancer, frequent pap smears, and spotting.

A similar question has been raised about the preservation of the ovaries, reports Newsweek. Two new studies suggest that, among women with stage one endometrial cancer, there are similar survival rates for those who have their ovaries removed along with the uterus, and those who choose to keep their ovaries. There may also be health benefits to keeping the ovaries intact: estrogen produced by the ovaries can help protect against heart disease and thinning bones. Furthermore, women who had their ovaries removed before menopause have a greater chance of developing dementia or other memory problems.

Dr. Seth Kivnick from the Kaiser Foundation Hospital in West Los Angeles stresses the importance of letting a woman decide for herself whether or not she would like to keep her cervix: "When you give women the choice, and you tell them the pros and cons, many of them find the idea of keeping the cervix very appealing."

The Debate Over Sparing the Cervix In Hysterectomies [WSJ]
Female Trouble [Newsweek]
Experts: Two-thirds Of Hysterectomies Unnecessary [CNN]

Image via Elite Choice

Working for a man is probably the only thing less fun than working for The Man. Both are probably going to end badly. But look: You're still trying, penning inflammatory columns to try and ramp up the Google Analytics score so you can get back into the career columnist game that just months ago left you abandoned and alone. Glad to see you've still got all that audacious hope! But here's the reality: look around. How many people do you really expect to die fully satisfied with their lives? One? Three? Now, what about the ones who are freezing their eggs. Do they probably have the worst odds of all of them? Yeah, like we discussed last week, a recession is coming. Everyone just needs to lower their standards. Life is pain! XOM

Want To Have A Baby? Now's The Time [Boston Globe]
Earlier: Want A Better Job? Stop Working Right Now And Get Your Nails Did

• Just a few hours after President Bush vetoed another bill in favor of stem-cell research, ABC News is reporting that women undergoing fertility treatments would be willing to donate their unused embryos to research if given the opportunity. [ABCNews]
  
• In the shithole that is Iraq,
  there's been a significant rise of displaced women undergoing illegal abortions. [Salon]
  
• Speaking of the Middle East, the public stoning of an Iranian woman accused of adultery has been delayed, perhaps (and hopefully) indefinitely. [Salon]
  
• Proof that the rest of the Western world is often a lot more reasonable than the U.S.: In the U.K., government experts are recommending that all young girls be vaccinated against HPV... and there's nary a conservative uproar about it! [Guardian]