Bicycles were heavily criticized in the nineteenth century for causing a terrifying medical condition known as "bicycle face".

A closer look

Bicycles were heavily criticized in the nineteenth century for causing a terrifying medical condition known as "bicycle face". Victorian doctors legitimately warned the public, especially women, that riding a two-wheeler would permanently freeze their facial features into a bulging-eyed, jaw-clenched mask of exhaustion and anxiety. This entirely fabricated disease was supposedly caused by the sheer terror of trying to balance on a moving contraption while fighting strong headwinds. In reality, the medical establishment was just profoundly uncomfortable with the newfound mobility and independence that bicycles gave to women, allowing them to travel without chaperones and wear bloomers instead of suffocating corsets. Instead of admitting their blatant sexism, physicians essentially published medical journals telling women they would turn ugly if they went outside and did some cardio