Pro Mujer Inc.

04/29/2024 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 04/29/2024 12:26

Women’s Health: A Profitable Bet to Propel the Economy

Women's Health: A Profitable Bet to Propel the Economy

Let's start with a simple exercise: go to Google and search for "heart attack victim." What are the results? Mostly older white men wearing painful expressions, one hand clutching the chest. Although not conclusive, this exercise represents the gender bias that still exists in the healthcare.

And that is really a matter of life or death. Although, according to Caroline Criado, author of the book "La mujer invisible: descubre cómo los datos configuran un mundo hecho por y para los hombres" [The Invisible Woman: Discover How Data Shapes a World Made by and for Men], heart attacks are considered male diseases, the reality is that cardiovascular diseases are the main cause of death from disease for women in the Americas (PAHO).

However, some methods of preventing these diseases, such as taking acetylsalicylicacid, are not only ineffective for women, but may even be harmful to them. Furthermore, because the symptoms of a heart attack differ so much between men and women and because the symptoms for women are not as well known in the medical community, one of the biggest problems women face are the lack of timely diagnosis. Women are also seven times more likely than men to be discharged during a heart attack.

This is neither coincidental nor, in any way, recent. Criado explains that, as far back as the 4th century B. C., Aristotle referred to men as an indisputable fact, and to women (or females) as a "deviation from type," a necessary aberration. How the characteristics of the male body are considered as the norm for medical developments is evidenced in more examples than we could easily imagine.

In her book, Criado explains how the lack of data differentiated by sex and the consideration of the male as the quintessential human body, has led to the coining of the term "Yentl syndrome," which refers to how women are more likely to receive a timely or appropriate diagnosis if their symptoms match those of men. And, as we have already seen, this is often not the case.

In fact, these biases are also shown in diseases or conditions that, because they are exclusive to women or people with feminine anatomical characteristics, have not received sufficient research. This is the case of endometriosis, a painful and, so far, incurable condition, in which endometrial tissue grows in other parts of the body and causes often disabling symptoms that contribute to absenteeism from school or work.

"And although the disease is thought to affect one in ten women-one hundred and seventy-six million worldwide-it was not until 2017 that the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence in England published its first guidelines for treatment. What was the main recommendation? "Listen to women," explains La Mujer Invisible.

With all this in mind, the need to increase investment in research and development around the health of this sector of the population becomes evident and urgent, and this is what the McKinsey Institute has shown in its report "Closing the Women's Health Gap: A $1 Trillion Opportunity to Improve Lives and Economies", published in January 2024.

According to the institute, addressing gaps and deficiencies in women's health could reduce the time they spend in poor health (25% of their lives) by almost two-thirds. This would allow 3.9 billion women to live healthier lives and to enjoy a better quality of life.

But, beyond the social impacts of having healthier women, which include better access to education and intergenerational benefits, improving women's health could also allow them to participate more actively in the workforce. This would propel the economy by at least $1 trillion annually by 2040, that is, a 1.7% increase in GDP per capita.

To achieve this, the report proposes solutions in five areas: increasing investment in specific research, improving the collection and analysis of data disaggregated by gender, expanding access to specific health services for women, creating incentives for innovation in women's health and developing public and private policies in favor of women's health.

The Role of Science in Addressing Health Disparities

Scientific research provides the basis for understanding gender differences in health and for developing effective and equitable interventions.

Without this, it is more difficult for healthcare and biomedical engineering professionals to understand the specific needs of women and to develop effective treatment strategies that help close the gender gap in healthcare.

Data Gaps Underestimate Women's Health Burden, Limiting Innovation and Investment

By overlooking women's health, opportunities to improve their lives are lost, especially among those who are part of vulnerable populations. Data can measure problems and the impact of their potential solutions and is of critical importance for analysis.

However, there are gaps all the way from data collection to data analysis, which affect how women's health is understood and approached. They also affect the effectiveness of interventions, women's participation in clinical trials, and gender-focused decision making.

Direct Investments Toward Women's Health

Not only is this crucial to closing the gender health gap, but it can also be highly cost-effective. Investing in gender-focused health research and solutions will not only improve health outcomes for women, but it will also benefit society, by addressing an area of ​​high needs and market potential: investment in improving women's health shows a positive return on investment (ROI), as, for every dollar invested, around three dollars in economic growth are projected (McKinsey, 2024).

All this evidence allows us to affirm that recognizing and addressing this gender gap are essential to promote change, and that women's health is not an isolated problem, but a pillar of well-being and social progress, because, the way we see it at Pro Mujer, a healthy woman is a woman who can develop her potential to the point of improving the conditions of her family, her community and-Why not?-the world.

Read the full report and explore more data and recommendations, here.

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