The first four leniencies listed here apply only when there has been no hargashah. Therefore, they do not apply to any discharge found on a bedikah cloth, or another item inserted internally such as a tampon or diaphragm, because the sensation of inserting or removing the item could have masked a hargashah.
1) The size of the stain
Only a stain larger than the size of a gris, roughly the area of a circle 19 millimeters in diameter (about the size of a penny), renders a woman niddah or invalidates the clean days. This measure is one of area, so a long narrow stain may still be smaller than a gris. When a woman is certain that a stain is smaller in area than a gris, she may be confident that it did not make her niddah.
Because this can be hard to judge, we usually suggest that women check stains by comparing them to a dime (17.91 mm in diameter) or a shekel (18 mm), both of which are slightly smaller than a gris. Consult with a halachic authority about stains that aren’t clearly this size or smaller—if none of the other leniencies of stains apply.
When several smaller stains are found on the body, they render her niddah if the total surface area adds up to more than the size of a gris. When several smaller stains are found on a garment or other surface, the area of each stain is considered separately.
2) The type of surface on which the stain was found
The laws of niddah, and particularly the decree about stains, are closely associated with the laws of ritual impurity (tumah v’taharah). Accordingly, our Sages ruled that a stain would have halachic significance only if it could render the object on which it was found ritually impure. Thus, a stain found on an object that is not susceptible to ritual impurity (e.g., a plastic chair or toilet seat, or on the floor) does not render a woman niddah or invalidate the clean days.
There is a dispute among contemporary halachic decisors as to whether synthetic fabrics such as nylon are susceptible to ritual impurity; if a stain is found on a garment made from synthetic fabric, a specific halachic question should be asked.
Our site follows the halachic ruling that disposable pantiliners and pads are not susceptible to ritual impurity, so that a stain found even on a white disposable pantiliner or pad does not make a woman niddah or invalidate the clean days.
During the clean days, a woman with chronic staining may sometimes receive halachic advice to use a white pantiliner in order to avoid staining questions.
Outside of the clean days, a woman may opt to use a colored pantiliner, which provides even more grounds for leniency.
According to many authorities, a stain on toilet paper, a toilet seat or toilet water is treated as a stain on an object that is not susceptible to ritual impurity. But if blood is found on any of these within seconds of urinating, the leniencies of stains may not apply. Please see our article Toilet Paper for more information.
3) The color of the surface on which the stain was found
A stain found on a colored surface does not render a woman niddah or invalidate the clean days. Therefore, it is highly recommended that women wear colored underwear (except during the seven clean days) and sleep on colored sheets, in order to avoid becoming niddah through staining.
This leniency applies to items of any color (except off-white and pale beige, which are typically considered shades of white). A woman can choose colors light enough that she will notice any staining, without the risk of a stain making her niddah.
4) The location of the stain
Only stains found where they could have come directly from vaginal bleeding can render a woman niddah or invalidate the clean days. Thus stains found on the inner surface of the legs, or on the hands or feet, or on clothing from the hips down, pose halachic questions, but those on the upper body, or arms do not – unless a woman has done handstands or other acrobatics.
5) A stain attributable to other causes
If the stain could reasonably have come from another source, it does not make a woman niddah and might not invalidate the clean days. For example:
- If she has a wound or lesion, to which the blood can reasonably be attributed (see Dam Makkah).
- If she was working with blood, e.g., drawing blood in a laboratory, suturing a wound, or cleaning chickens.
- If she can attribute the blood she found to someone else, e.g., she lifted a child with a nosebleed.
For women who follow Ashkenazi rulings, the rules for attributing a stain to an external cause are more stringent during the first three of the seven clean days. Thus, if she is not absolutely sure that the blood is from an external source, she should consult a halachic authority.
One may also attribute blood found on something inserted internally, such as a diaphragm or bedikah cloth, to a lesion or wound. One should consult a halachic authority.
6) The color of the stain
A flow or stain makes a woman niddah or invalidates the clean days only if its color is one of those that halacha stipulates as niddah colors. Discharge that has no trace of red or pink (e.g., clear, white, yellow, or green) does not make a woman niddah. Brown the shade of coffee with milk or lighter, with no hint of red, also does not make a woman niddah. Darker shades of brown, or browns with a reddish tint, require evaluation by a halachic authority. Stains are best evaluated in natural sunlight (holding the cloth or stained item in the shade rather than in direct sunlight), as colors may appear different in artificial light.
Colors are also relevant to discharge found on something inserted internally, such as a diaphragm or bedikah cloth.
