Dr. Sahar Wertheimer was recently quoted in an article written by John Loeppky for Verywell Mind titled “Purity Culture And Its Effect On Mental Health.”

Purity culture encompasses the way society and popular culture reinforces the idea of sexual purity as a measure of a person’s worth. It started as a largely Christian religious phenomenon but has grown beyond that, especially in the US, and has far ranging mental health impacts on those it affects.

Purity is not only connected to Christianity. It can be connected and/or confused with a culture of modesty that is prevalent in many other religions. Dr. Sahar Wertheimer (MD) is a fertility expert at HRC Fertility West Los Angeles and an orthodox Jew who works to inform especially religious people about reproductive health. She says she sees these values of purity and modesty become problematic when they become weaponized, particularly against women.

“The hesitancy to speak about certain aspects of women’s health, because of modesty reasons, because of privacy reasons, has hindered some of the basic knowledge that I think all women need to have to be better self-advocates, to take care of themselves, to take care of their loved ones, and to make people feel less alone,” Dr. Wertheimer says.

Learn more about purity culture and how it can challenge people’s mental health here.