Why is chronic pain more common in women than men? 🤔
New research in mice points to something surprising: immune cells 🧬
Scientists found that certain immune cells help “turn off” pain signals after an injury — but they seem to work more effectively in males than in females. ⚖️
That difference could help explain why pain is more likely to linger and become chronic in women.
And here’s the big shift 👇
This isn’t just about understanding pain
It’s about rethinking how we treat it
Instead of relying on opioids 💊
Future therapies could target immune pathways to help stop chronic pain before it becomes long-term.
This is exactly why understanding sex differences in biology matter 🔬
Read more at our link in bio.
#WomensHealth #WHAMNow #Immunology #ImmuneHealth #ChronicPain
🔥 As we head into the extreme heat of summer, could heat-safety testing be overlooking how women respond?
A new @UConn study found that a widely used heat-tolerance test—originally developed using male data—does not measure heat adaptation the same way in males and females.
🌡️ We’re using one testing system for bodies that respond to heat differently.
As temperatures rise, understanding those differences can help better protect athletes, military personnel, workers, and communities from heat stress.
At WHAM, we are accelerating research and investment that recognizes sex as an essential biological variable—advancing better science and stronger health outcomes for everyone.
🔗 Read more at the link in our bio.
#WomensHealth #FemaleAthletes #HeatSafety #SexDifferences #WHAMNow
If every one of Jules’ followers gave just $5, together we could help fund life-saving research for women. 🩷 Small gift. Big impact.
Tap the fundraiser above to help save lives.
#WomensHealth #WomensHealthResearch #WHAMNow
5 facts more people should know:
🩷 94% of women never get taught about menopause in school
🩷 1 in 4 women live with reproductive health issues that disrupt daily life
🩷 2 in 3 IBS patients are women
🩷 Endometriosis affects 1 in 10 women — takes 8-9 years to diagnose
🩷 Women with chest pain wait 29% longer than men to be checked for a heart attack
These aren’t isolated data points. They’re symptoms of the same root problem: women’s health has been under-researched, under-taught, and under-funded.
The good news? Data exists. The science is starting to catch up. What’s missing is funding.
Awareness got us here. Funding gets us further. 💪
Tap the fundraiser below to help close the gap.
Know someone who needs to see this? Send it their way. 🔁
#WomensHealth #WomensHealthGap #CloseTheGap #WHAMNow #HealthEquity WomensHealthData
Ever wonder why your Oura ring feels like it actually gets your body?
That`s not an accident. Oura has become one of the biggest sources of real data on women`s cycles, fertility, pregnancy, and menopause — stuff medicine has ignored for decades.
Now Oura might go public. And that`s bigger than it sounds.
It means:
📊 The data from your ring could actually shape future health research
📊 Companies are finally realizing women`s health is worth investing in
📊 Understanding female bodies isn`t a "niche" anymore — it`s mainstream
For so long, women`s health got left out of the research room. Oura`s success is proof that paying attention to women`s bodies isn`t just the right thing to do — it`s a smart thing to do.
Learn more → link in bio
#WomensHealth #Oura #OuraRing #WHAMNow
What if the cost of a coffee could help move women’s health research forward? Donate $5 today and be part of the change. #WomensHealth #WHAMNow
WHAM: Redefining the Health of Women
Women represent more than half of the population and drive the majority of healthcare decisions, yet women’s health remains significantly undercapitalized across research, product development, and private investment. By validating the economic opportunity and connecting stakeholders across the innovation pipeline, WHAM catalyzes market growth and advances innovation that improves healthspan and longevity for everyone.
Why WHAM Exists
WHAM was created in response to a longstanding gap in health research: women have historically been underrepresented in studies, clinical trials, and product development despite their central role in healthcare systems and economies.
Although policies requiring the inclusion of women in federally funded research were introduced in the 1990s, major disparities in funding, evidence generation, and innovation persist. These gaps have far-reaching consequences for health outcomes, workforce participation, and economic stability.
Our Founding Vision
In 2020, WHAM Founder Carolee Lee convened leaders from business, finance, and philanthropy to address this systemic challenge. The group recognized that durable change would require rigorous evidence demonstrating the economic costs of underinvestment and the potential returns of increased research focused on women.
To establish this foundation, WHAM commissioned the RAND Corporation to conduct a comprehensive analysis of the health and socioeconomic benefits of increased investment in women’s health research.
WHAM was established as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization in 2021 to catalyze accelerated research, innovation, and investment in the health of women, led by an esteemed board of expertise.
How We Drive Impact
WHAM aligns expertise, capital, and leadership to accelerate progress from discovery to real-world impact through a coordinated ecosystem of collaboratives and initiatives.
WHAM has three main platforms of expertise:
The WHAM Report
A series of studies that quantify the costs and economic benefits of increasing investments in women’s health research. Our intention was to build the business case for funding research focused on women by asking, “what are the economic impacts of increasing investment in women’s health research.”
The WHAM Edge Awards
The WHAM Edge Awards support early-career investigators pursuing groundbreaking research on sex-based differences in four critical areas: heart disease, brain health, autoimmune disease, and cancer.
The WHAM Collaboratives
Bringing together global investment leaders from VC, corporate VC, family offices, endowments, foundations, and government, similar to the WHAM Research Collaborative, to be the industry leading catalyst enabling us to achieve, and surpass, our goal to double VC investment for women.
The WHAM Research Collaborative
The Opportunity Ahead
The lives of women and men will vastly improve through research and product development that is equally inclusive of women and men in trials – and female and male animals in preliminary research. By conducting research and developing products in parity and reporting sex outcomes separately, health breakthroughs will be accelerated, and health outcomes around the world improved.
As women benefit from this research and development and reduce their burden of disease, they will improve their own wellbeing, which is directly connected to the wellbeing of our economy.
WHAM is committed to making an impact in diseases and conditions that exclusively, differently, or disproportionately affect women.
Join the Community
Follow us on LinkedIn to receive the latest in women’s health: @Women’s Health Access Matters
TAKE ACTION
Make a donation, join the community, or help us spread the word about WHAM and our work—every little bit helps, and we are deeply appreciative of your support.
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Donate to Women's Health Research
Women are 51% of the population but receive only a fraction of biomedical research funding. Sex differences are still often ignored, even in diseases that hit women hardest. Advancing sex-based research closes that gap, sparks innovation, and delivers more precise care for everyone. Support the future of health—for women, and for all.
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Donate to Autoimmune Disease Research
Four out of five Americans with autoimmune disease are women—40 million lives impacted—yet the science hasn’t kept up. In 2019, only 7 % of the NIH’s rheumatoid arthritis budget focused on women. Dedicated funding can pinpoint why women are so vulnerable and drive better diagnostics, therapies, and quality of life. Fuel research that will change lives.
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Donate to Brain Health Research
Women make up two-thirds of Alzheimer’s cases and are twice as likely to suffer depression—yet we still don’t know why. Targeted, sex-specific studies can reveal the biological and clinical differences that unlock earlier diagnosis, smarter treatments, and healthier minds. Your gift drives that discovery.
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Donate to Cancer Research
Most cancer studies still default to male models, overlooking critical sex differences in how cancers start, spread, and respond to therapy. Lung cancer now kills more women than breast, ovarian, and cervical cancers combined, and rates are soaring among young, non-smoking women. Boosting sex-based cancer research will reveal why—and lead to breakthroughs in screening, care, and survival. Help us accelerate that work.
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Donate to Heart Health Research
Heart disease is the No. 1 killer of women, but it remains underfunded, under-researched, and underdiagnosed. Nearly half of women over 20 have cardiovascular disease, pregnancy heart risks are widespread, and women are 50% more likely to die after a heart attack. Focused research can rewrite those odds—changing how heart disease is detected, treated, and prevented in women. Invest in saving women’s hearts.
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