Hey there,
Earlier this week I headed to the Decoding the Future of Women event, powered by FemTech Lab.
It was great to see so many fabulous people from the women’s health community come together and the panels were full of powerhouses from across the industry.
One session caused the most discussion with those I spoke with: Can we reproduce on Mars? I’ve covered the content in more detail here but, in essence, there are currently companies working on innovation to support making a baby in orbit.
Let me know what you think about it.
Coming back down to earth, here’s what you need to know this week.
Three ways to help close the gender health gap
Learn what makes a good bra
Do you suffer from breast pain? Apparently 52% of people experience it at some point (pre-period boob ache anyone?)
The ‘bra professor’, Joanna Wakefield-Scurr, explains more about breast health in this post and why a good bra is essential.
Joanna is the Head of Research Group in Breast Health at University of Portsmouth so knows a thing or two on the subject. She also supported England’s Women footballers with bra support in their Euro 2022 training - read more on that here.
TL;DR - a good bra has supportive arm straps and underband - you shouldn’t be able to pull these straps more than 5cms away from your body.
Donate to improve access to menopause education
The Vagina Museum in London needs your help.
Its next exhibition - Menopause: What’s Changed? - is scheduled to open on World Menopause Day (18th October 2024).
It will explore some of the stigma around menopause and showcase the different experiences of this life stage including the LGBT+ perspective and those who go through early menopause.
But they’ve hit a problem. None of the arts and heritage funders they approached will provide momentary support for the exhibition.
Here’s where you come in. Could you donate to make this event happen? View the crowd funder page here.
Read more about Equal Research Day
Vaginal health startup, Evvy, has turned June 10th into Equal Research Day. Its purpose is to promote inclusive research and raise awareness for the gender health gap.
This year they’ve created 100 Effed Facts About The Gender Health Gap—The Book. A gorgeous, yet educational, addition to any coffee table.
Plus, proceeds go to Women’s Health Access Matters (WHAM), an organisation dedicated to increasing women’s health research.
Find the book here.
Bonus this week is this brilliant summary by urologist, Maria Uloko, about why medical sexism is real. The mention of abdominal surgery (aka a C-section) without general anaesthetic really hit me. It’s wild what we do in the name of pregnancy.
One final thing, I’m keen to know more about you. Could you do this quick poll?
If you enjoyed reading this, please do like or shout about it!
When not curating this email, I help women’s health brands find their voice and stand out in a busy market. Find out more here about my tone of voice and brand positioning offer.
Thanks very much for reading,
Hannah