Tonight: a weight loss drug just posted numbers associated with bariatric surgery, what 198 proteins in your blood have to do with your period, and more.
— Meghan McCarthy
WOMEN'S HEALTH GETS 20 CENTS ON THE RESEARCH DOLLAR
Only 20% of program funding across the ten conditions analyzed by the World Economic Forum targets women specifically, and 59% of that goes to just two: ovarian cancer and menopause. For conditions that hit women harder or differently, including heart disease and anxiety, fewer than 3% of clinical trials carry any women-specific focus. Anxiety disorders illustrate the translation gap: 112 pipeline programs identified, four products launched in the past decade.
THE NEXT WEIGHT LOSS DRUG JUST HIT NUMBERS ASSOCIATED WITH BARIATRIC SURGERY
Eli Lilly's retatrutide — a GLP-1 that also hits two additional receptors — posted results showing over 45% of participants reached at least 30% weight loss, a threshold long associated with bariatric surgery. Participants who took the drug for two years lost an average of 85 pounds. Women already use GLP-1 drugs at roughly twice the rate of men which makes the results particularly consequential for women's health.
THE MENSTRUAL CYCLE LEAVES A PROTEIN FINGERPRINT IN YOUR BLOOD
A Nature Medicine study analyzed blood plasma from around 2,800 women and identified 198 proteins that rise and fall in distinct patterns across the menstrual cycle — extending well beyond reproductive hormones into immune, vascular, and metabolic pathways. Several of those proteins overlap with endometriosis, fibroids, and abnormal uterine bleeding. Researchers also developed a 75-protein score capable of predicting menstrual cycle phase from a single blood draw, with potential implications for how clinical trials account for cycle timing and how these common, chronically underdiagnosed disorders get identified earlier.
CREATINE IS THE MENOPAUSE SUPPLEMENT OF THE MOMENT. DOCTORS ARE LESS SURE.
Creatine has become the supplement of the moment for women in perimenopause and menopause, with influencers claiming it fights muscle loss and brain fog. The New York Times found that most creatine research has been done in men and a 2025 meta-analysis couldn't draw conclusions on its effects in middle age due to insufficient data. The Cleveland Clinic's medical director for women's comprehensive health described the evidence in women as "quite weak." Most physicians interviewed won't recommend it but won't fight a patient who wants to try: it's safe, inexpensive, and — per the experts — has to be paired with resistance training to do anything for muscle mass at all.
BIRTH CONTROL IS OTC NOW. YOUNG WOMEN STILL DON'T KNOW HOW IT WORKS.
Since 2024, birth control pills are available over the counter in the U.S. — no prescription needed. A University of Mississippi School of Pharmacy survey of women aged 16 to 24 found they have only moderate knowledge about how pills prevent pregnancy and what the side effects are, with rural women faring worse due to pharmacy closures and fewer OBGYNs. The study's author flags AI chatbots and platforms like ChatGPT as an unreliable substitute for a provider conversation — at a moment when that's exactly where many young women are going for answers.