Womens health

Analysis and Comment (9)

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We now put women in chemical straitjackets and prescribe psychotropic medication instead of locking them up for unfeminine behaviour or marital discontent. Vineus/Flickr

DSM-5 helps perpetuate the myth of women’s madness

By Jane Ussher, University of Western Sydney

The newly released edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual for Mental Disorders (DSM-5) may be heralded as the “bible of psychiatry”, but it is not an objective scientific document outlining the…
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The UK has a strict policy of gender segregation on psychiatric wards, and so should Australia. Image from shutterstock.com

Sexual assaults in psych wards show urgent need for reform

By Jayashri Kulkarni, Monash University

Women admitted to psychiatry wards experience high levels of violence and sexual assaults, according to a report released this week by the Victorian Mental Illness Alliance Council. Across the nine different…
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Paying up to $5,000 in a carefully regulated market would recognise the inconveniences associated with donation. misterbenben

Women who donate their eggs deserve compensation – here’s why

By Meredith Nash, University of Tasmania

Women are generally born with about a million eggs. Yet, women with reproductive problems or “older” women (over the age of 40) often cannot conceive with their own eggs. The solution is to use donor eggs…
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A much wider group of Australian women will be able to choose a medical rather than surgical procedure. spaceodissey/Flickr

Politics v women’s health: RU486 and the TGA saga

By Kerry Petersen, La Trobe University

The Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) finally included the abortifacient Mifepristone (also referred to as RU486) on the Australia Register of Therapeutic Goods (ARTG) in August 2012 – after nearly…
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Germaine Greer is right: female genital mutilation and female genital cosmetic surgery are both “cultural” issues. bombhead

Female genital cosmetic surgery: a labial obsession

By Camille Nurka, University of Melbourne

On last night’s Q&A, feminist campaigner Germaine Greer suggested a comparison between practices of female genital mutilation (FGM) in Africa and female genital cosmetic surgery (FGCS) in Western nations…
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Understanding the mechanics of breast movement feeds into better design for sports bras. mikebaird

Bouncing breasts: the science of the sports bra

By Debbie Risius, University of Portsmouth

If you’re female and exercise, a certain amount of breast movement is inevitable. But bosom movement extends beyond bouncing up and down – it also involves moving side to side, which impacts on breast…

Research and News (2)

Research Briefs (17)

Aspirin may lower stroke risk

University of North Carolina

The risk of stroke associated with high trans fat intake is lower among women taking aspirin, a study shows. The risk of…

Weight and age affect childbirth pain

Columbia University Medical Center/Newswise

First-time mothers, obese women and those who have longer labours experience greater pain in childbirth than other women…

Link between sleep disorders and dementia

The Journal of the American Medical Association

Older women suffering from sleep-relating breathing problems could be more susceptible to problems with mental function and…

Participants (45)