Women’s health has been ignored for too long. For centuries, men’s healthcare has been prioritized over women’s. As a result, women’s medical concerns are often under researched, misunderstood, or dismissed. This bias continues to affect how women are diagnosed and treated today.
The difference in research between male pattern baldness and endometriosis is a great example of this gap. A 2025 analysis by George Ratcliffe found that there is more research on male pattern baldness than on endometriosis. Endometriosis is a chronic condition that causes tremendous pain, infertility, inflammation, and many more symptoms while also having no cure. While male pattern baldness has no life altering symptoms besides decreased self esteem.
Despite endometriosis’s serious impacts on women, it receives less attention and funding compared to a less alarming male hereditary condition which doesn’t physically hurt men.
Biological differences between men and women also make balanced research necessary. According to a 2024 article from the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC), men and women differ in muscle mass, bone density, organ size, and blood composition. These differences mean treatments tested mainly on men may not work the same way for women.
If women and men have biological differences why are only male mammals being tested for serious conditions both suffer from? From this women face higher risks during treatment. Medications and procedures may not be as effective or could even cause complications. Studying both sexes equally helps ensure treatments are safe and effective for everyone.
This shouldn’t have to be an equality problem, it’s a necessity and should be common sense.
Heart disease is the number one leading cause of death for women, yet women are often misdiagnosed or ignored when reporting symptoms. In many cases, doctors dismiss their concerns as stress or anxiety, delaying important care.
Some argue researchers historically limited testing on women to protect them and potential fetuses because clinical trials involved risks. Scientists often avoided including women of childbearing age. Their goal was to prevent harm to women and unborn fetuses.
Excluding these women from research created concerning gaps in medical knowledge. Not all women are pregnant or planning on becoming pregnant, yet they were still left out.
Not only did this create biased findings and treatments, it’s still affecting doctors today making it harder for them to fully understand treatment for women.
The healthcare system should serve everyone equally, making medication and treatments safer and more effective. Especially because women make up just under 50% of the world population.
Sources:
https://www.aamc.org/news/why-we-know-so-little-about-women-s-health
