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EVERYTHING
Melinda Enters the (Repro Rights) Political Arena
What: Stat Health reports that Melinda Gates taking her $12.5 billion out of the Gates Foundation to her own entity means she “aims to influence reproductive rights in the US.” That includes being directly involved in “political campaigns and donations, which is not possible for foundations.”
Why it matters: “’She’s going to be a tremendous counterweight to a lot of the increasingly conservative things that are going on, and not only about abortion, but also questions about access to contraceptives,’ said Kathleen McCarthy, the director of the Center on Philanthropy and Civil Society at CUNY Graduate Center. ‘She has enough money to help to keep the clinic systems alive, to help to ensure that women have access to some kind of care.’”
Source: Stat Health
PREGNANCY + POSTPARTUM
Giving the Placenta Its Due
What: Like so many elements of women’s health, “the placenta and its pathologies have largely been understudied, some clinicians say. There are multiple reasons why: the difficulties in studying a fleeting and dynamic organ, the limitations in researching pregnant people, a lack of scientific consensus, few prospective studies, and the absence of standardized pathology reports on placentas.”
Why it matters: “The human placenta does a lot of work for the fetus; it is, effectively, the fetal lungs, kidneys, and digestive tract. It’s also one of the only organs in the animal world that consists of two separate organisms — with tissues from both the mother and fetus — as well as the only temporary organ. …The research has, so far, shown that issues with the placenta — its size, its placement, its microbiome — can signal health problems with both pregnant person and fetus, such as preeclampsia, gestational diabetes, preterm birth, and stillbirth.”
Source: Undark
MENSTRUATION
Talking About Periods
What: In an effort to break taboos, the New York Times spends “a lively 3 minutes 33 seconds” with 10 people on camera who “describe their feelings about their own periods, from love and pride to discomfort and hate.”
Why it matters: When you stop to think about it, it *is* crazy that we talk so little about something so common.
Source: New York Times
ABORTION ACCESS
Why Are Social Media Companies Suppressing Abortion Information?
What: The New York Times reports that several groups have examples of social media companies pulling down their accounts, posts, or videos in recent months, and “show why they are increasingly confused and frustrated by how major technology platforms moderate posts about abortion services.”
Why it matters: “They say the platforms seem to have been more aggressive about removing or suppressing posts that share information about how to obtain safe and legal procedures since the Supreme Court ended the constitutional right to abortion in 2022. And when the platforms do restrict the accounts, the companies can be difficult to contact to learn why.”
Source: New York Times
CARDIOVASCULAR
The Mystery of Stress and Women’s Hearts
What: The Washington Post pulls together evidence from several studies that suggests “the effects of mental health has a disproportionate impact on women’s bodies,” especially cardiovascular conditions, and “particularly among young and middle-aged women.”
Why it matters: “In the intricate web of mental health and cardiovascular well-being, there isn’t a clear explanation why the connection is so strong in women… ‘We know that anxiety and stress and depression are bad. Now, let’s figure out how to best identify and treat people who are at risk,’ said Puja Mehta, director of women’s translational cardiovascular research at the Emory Women’s Heart Center. ‘How do we help them manage stress so that it improves blood flow to the heart?’”
Source: Washington Post
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