Women are not just small men

When reading about a new scientific study in the newspaper, you assume that about half of the participants were women. When skimming data from a survey that has made the news, you expect that the results apply to women, too. This is, frustratingly, far from the truth, and only recently being talked about. 

Women were already rarely represented in scientific research before the 1970s, but progress was hindered even further in 1977 when the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) made a policy that excluded women of reproductive potential from Phase 1 and 2 clinical trials. This meant that the safety, efficiency and security of any new drugs were only applicable to men. Whether there were any side effects on female-only diseases or body parts was completely unknown - until phase three, when up to several thousand patients take the drug and are monitored. 

The tragedy of the thalidomide drug just shows the effect that this exclusion had on science - and people. The drug, which is a sedative that can be used to dull morning sickness, was never tested on pregnant women. Researchers - men, because it was the 1950s - at Chemie Grünenthal said that it would reduce vomiting during pregnancy without even experimenting with this idea. In theory, yes, it would - and it did, however the disastrous effects that began emerging in the summer of 1958 were proof enough that experimentation is vital. 

You'd hope that by the 1980s, things were better. Progress was being made, but it was small and arguably nothing changed. 1987 was when NIH (National Institutes of Health) published a policy that encouraged women "and minorities" to be included in medical research. Women "and minorities". I think the repetition is enough said. 

And the punishment for going against this policy was a call for "rationale". No fine, no suspension from the position, nothing but 'I had a reason so it's okay'. 

There is no sense of triumph as I tell you this: in 1993, congress* made it law to include women in medical research. 

To some, this news may seem trivial, boring even. To me and many, many others, it is extremely consequential. It was not until 2024 that women were told how many hours of sleep they really need: 9, one more than men (due to different hormones). During menstruation, it is 10 hours, which is, of course, somewhat unrealistic - but it would be more achievable if we actually knew what our goal was. 

The medical system has failed many generations to come. On average it takes 10 years to get diagnosed with endometriosis, a chronic disease leaving women in severe pain that impacts daily life, and is often linked with anxiety, depression, infertility and nausea. This is because of the lack of knowledge surrounding the female body, so doctors often resort to telling patients they simply have a low pain tolerance. 

In terms of rights, yes, equality may have been reached for women. But in terms of science, society and the system, we still have a long way to go. We need to stop believing that women are just smaller versions of men. 

*It is difficult to find a date for this in the UK, but I imagine it is very similar.