Recently in Health Category

Via FoxNews

Beginning in 2010, Alabama, which has the second highest obesity rate in the country, will start charging all of its employees an extra $25 per month for health insurance. (Currently, single workers pay nothing; family plans cost $180 a month.)

But there's a way to avoid the fee: Get a check-up at an in-office "wellness center," where nurses will check for diabetes and hypertension and measure blood pressure, cholesterol, glucose levels and Body Mass Index (BMI).

The idea is to encourage employees to act responsibly, lose weight and lower their health care needs. But critics say it will humiliate and stigmatize obese employees and amounts to nothing short of a "fat tax."

Thanks to reader r_bastet for the link

This one seems like a good news, sketchy news kind of situation to me.

The good news

Local researchers have found that mothers' views about premarital sex don't affect their decisions on whether their pre-teen or teenage daughters should get the vaccine against the sexually transmitted virus that causes cervical cancer.

The survey, by a team at the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston, appears to refute the perception that mothers who opt against their daughters receiving the vaccine for the human papillomavirus do so because they oppose sex before marriage.

The study's lead author Susan Rosenthal said, "This is a decision about parenting, vulnerability and vaccine attitudes, not sexuality...Mothers who haven't had their daughter vaccinated yet most often said they want more time to learn about the vaccine."

The perhaps-sketch news

The study was in part funded by Merck, the vaccine's manufacturer.

Thoughts?

We've written about the great film At Your Cervix before, but this time we need your help.

The film's director Amy Jo Goddard has written Feministing to let us know that they're trying to get the word out about the project and, of course, need funds in order to do so. Right now, the film is up for up for a $10,000 award on Idea Blob - they're one of eight finalists. So if you like what At Your Cervix is doing, and you want to support Goddard's work, head on over and vote!

After the Red Cross conducted a census of sex workers in an effort to curb the spread of HIV, authorities Bauchi, NIgeria identified 320 women from the study and started to arrest them.

Our correspondent says the Sharia commission seems to have been prompted to act by the perception that it was unable to enforce a ban on commercial sex workers in the state.

The Sharia commission normally liaises with the police, he says, but this time they acted directly, using their own security force to arrest the sex workers.

It is not clear how many of the women have already been arrested.

They could face flogging or prison terms.

Following the arrests, the Red Cross has halted its census.

Horrifying that an attempt to improve women's health could be turned around and used to punish them. What I want to know is how they got a hold of the census?

Thanks to Matt for the link.

According to a new report from the report from the American Psychological Association, abortion does not pose a threat to women's mental health.

Via RMJ at the Community blog.

New research out on postpartum mental illness is making it clear that there may be more serious conditions for new mothers than just postpartum depression.

Post Tramautic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is most commonly associated with combat veterans and victims of violent crime, but medical experts say it also can be brought on by a very painful or complicated labor and delivery in which a woman believes she or her baby might die. Symptoms can include anxiety, flashbacks and a numbness to daily life. Even as medical advances have resulted in many more lives saved during high-risk births, extreme medical interventions can leave a mother severely stressed -- especially if she feels powerless or mistreated by health providers (emphasis mine).

I'm happy that the piece highlights the connection to increased interventions and powerlessness during childbirth. Both of these are seeing a higher incidence as our c-section rate soars and medical interventions become the norm. This isn't just going to have an impact on the babies being born, but the mothers as well.

Cheryl Beck, a professor at the University of Connecticut School of Nursing who researches birth trauma and was an adviser on the Childbirth Connection survey, says the mothers who reported signs of PTSD in the survey appeared to have a higher rate of medical interventions and describe feeling powerless in a threatening environment.

After Janna was so awesome to blog for us from the XVII International AIDS Conference (IAC) this week, the conference comes to a close today, but not without some things to take back with us.

International Planned Parenthood, Young Positives, the UNFPA and the Global Coalition on Women and AIDS collaborated together to release a new guide in an effort to improve HIV prevention among girls and young women.

The guide, "Make It Matter," focuses not only on increasing reproductive and sexual health services for girls and women, but addresses other problems that contribute to millions of women who have HIV every year like socioeconomic status and child marriage. Download the report here.

Contributed by Janna A. Zinzi, Guttmacher Institute

The XVII International AIDS Conference (IAC) officially kicked off on Sunday as 25,000 delegates from all corners of the world descended upon Mexico City for an intensive week of learning, activism and dialogue. My Guttmacher colleague, Joerg, and I arrived a few days before the main event to participate in the aptly-named Fuerza Joven de Mexico (Youth Force of Mexico), a three-day pre-conference gathering for young advocates aimed at raising the visibility of youth HIV/AIDS issues before, during and after the IAC.

More than 300 young people, many connected to international NGOs, make up this vocal coalition promoting youth participation and youth-adult partnerships. Under this year's theme of "Rights, Respect, Responsibility, and Resources," Fuerza Joven's focus is advocating for early, comprehensive, evidence-based sex education to prevent the spread of HIV among young people who make up more than four in 10 new HIV infections. A number of sessions also focused on gender issues as well as the needs of marginalized groups, such as sex workers and gay youth.

Hanaa Rifaey doesn't sleep much. I'll let her explain why. But the next time you find yourself pissed at another policy done wrong, know that Hanaa is on it. And you can be, too. Even if it's a small step, it'll add up.

Here's Hanaa...

A new US/UK study argues that younger women are happier than younger men and older men are happier than older women:

later in life...men come closer than women to fulfilling their material goods and family life aspirations, are more satisfied with their financial situation and family life, and are the happier of the two genders.

This seems dubious to me. Most of the older women I know are really frickin' happy. They've shed their "good girl" conditioning, they don't care as much if they look perfect, and they often have this sort of second lease on life attitude where they try new careers, new places to live, even new partners.

A lot of the older men I know, on the other hand, seem to really struggle when they retire (if they're so lucky) and have to form an identity that's not work-based. I've watched my own dad struggle with this new stage of life. As much as he is enjoying laying on a hammock, reading, taking classes, learning how to cook, he's also really struggled to make meaning out of his new existence. For those who aren't lucky enough to retire, it seems like the work grind can get really, really boring after 40-odd years. In workplaces with age discrimination, these guys can feel pretty pushed out.

And I'm not sure what to make of the younger women being happier part of the argument. I see my friends as pretty equally happy and unhappy, regardless of the gender.

Your thoughts?

Sounds like a stupid question right?

Anyway, I guess I sometimes I call my period my moon (I know, how 70's of me), but I have never called the week before my period "venus week." But according to this new book, the way our hormones are before the week of our period actually has an impact on our behavior. This is a pretty duh statement for most women out there, but I do think it is interesting. Some points in the book.

Women look and feel best when they are most likely to conceive (that's the Venus Week), but it's possible to optimize Venus and other portions of their hormonal cycle.

When estrogen levels are high (during Venus Week) women are more confident, socially agile and at ease; skin and hair looks and feels better too.

Testosterone also peaks during this week, hence the stronger desire for intimacy and heightened libido during these five to seven days.

What I don't think is interesting is when social scientists use research like this to make definitive conclusions in women's behavior. So take it for what it is. Sometimes we like to have more sex before our periods, among other things and you can pretty much assume that is not true for everyone and certainly not all the time.

Other problems with this type of research that I am overlooking?

Via.

Thomas Beattie, the pregnant trans man who made headlines recently after an appearance on Oprah and an article for the advocate, just gave birth last month.

You can see the video from the Good Morning America segment here.

In the category of shameless self-promotion, check out my feature over at RH Reality Check on the myth of the elective c-section.

When the media covers the rising rate of c-section, it's often ready to lay the blame at the feet of a woman we've come to know well over the last few years -- the busy career mom scheduling her delivery between important business deals, penciling in labor and delivery the way she pencils in a client meeting. As criticism of surgical birth mounts, the idea that mother-initiated c-sections are spurring an overall increase in the practice has only become more popular.

Sitting in on the interview with creators of the Midwest Teen Sex Show. They are awesome. When asked why they started MTSS they said, "We started by doing something that was funny and entertain ourselves." It has turned into one of the most effective forms of harm reduction around young people and sex, along with educational and honest.

The moderator asks, "Why is humor so effective in trying to reach this audience?" They reply, "Sex is funny, repackaging info in a way people will listen. Not talking down to kids (and sometimes) we are making fun of them. We are building a relationship with youth through humor."

In my opinion everything should have more humor and MTSS is a great use of humor while putting out information for young people around sex and sexuality. Because of the nature of their content they have gotten negative feedback along with positive, but hey, isn't is always like that.

When asked about their favorite episode they chose this the older boyfriend.

They also gave a Feministing shout out from the stage! Thanks Nikol and Guy. We love you!

Gee, I wonder why. It's actually quite serious, the cases of melanoma - the deadliest form of skin cancer - among young white women jumped 50 percent from 1980-2004.

The researchers recommended that more studies be conducted to find out if changes among sun exposure or increased tanning bed usage have a hand in this. I'd say that's a really good idea.

You know we have a serious problem when women are sacrificing their health for the sake of attaining their beauty standard.

*Photo from People magazine.

Are we really surprised?

Planned Parenthood of Central Washington was scheduled to hold an event at a local Wal-Mart on National HIV Testing Day where their Teen Council were simply going to stand outside of the store and hand out information about HIV prevention and testing. But the American Life League got a tip on the event, and urged their supporters to call and complain to the store, after which Wal-Mart succumbed and canceled the event.

You know, because handing out preventative information that saves people's lives is just so not okay. American Life League's statement is horrific, and conveniently makes no mention of what the event was actually for:

“Planned Parenthood is now in such desperate need of customers it’s willing to do anything – even stand outside shopping centers to lure young people into its clinics,” said Marie Hahnenberg, a researcher for American Life League.

"They’re pushing pornography and contraception onto young children – beginning in kindergarten. Now parents aren’t even safe to go shopping without worrying Planned Parenthood will pressure their kids into promiscuous lifestyles that will increase their bloated birth control and abortion profits,” Hahnenberg said.

I just love it when they equate pro-choicers with pushers and pimps. (And on 5 year olds, no less. They're big money, I tell ya!) This is the kind of shit that reminds me just how fucking insane these people are. Their supporters who called Walmart - and Walmart itself - should be ashamed that they believed these horrid lies and, in Planned Parenthood's words, "put the wishes of extremists ahead of crucial community health information that empowers people to make responsible choices."

Call Walmart at 509-628-8420 and let them know just how wrong they were.

I wanted to write a post about how annoyed I am about Midol's "Reverse the Curse" commercials. (Seriously, the curse?) But I couldn't turn up any videos on the damn internets. What I did find however, was this commercial from about 10 years ago that is a damn lot more progressive than the commercials the product has now.

It also fit very nicely into one of the double standards I talk about in my book (shameless plug alert!): "He's Angry, She's PMSing." Indeed.

So, dear readers, where are the cool progressive ads about women's health? Why are we stuck with curses and fish references? Please, if you find any cool, funny ads - send them my way!

Alternet has a piece up on insomnia in women (originally printed at Ms. magazine) that I found pretty interesting. I've actually suffered from horrible insomnia since I was a kid, and it was only recently (though the miracle of Melatonin) that I started sleeping through the night. I never knew how much getting a real night's sleep could change your life.

Any one with sleep problems want to weigh in?

Via RH Reality Check and the Big Push for Midwives:

Steff Hedenkamp, Communications Coordinator for The Big Push for Midwives says, "Maternity care is a multi-billion dollar industry in the United States. So it's no surprise to see the AMA join the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists in its ongoing fight to corner the market and ensure that the only midwives able to practice legally are hospital-based midwives forced to practice under physician control. I will say, though, that I'm shocked to learn that the AMA is taking this turf battle to the next level by setting the stage for outlawing home birth itself-a direct attack on those families who choose home birth, who could be subject to criminal prosecution if the AMA has its way."

Apparently Ricki Lake and her new hit documentary the Business of Being Born might be partially to blame. With the soaring costs of maternity care, the further increasing c-section rate and our not-so-great maternal mortality rate, it's no surprise that birth activists and mothers are up in arms about this.

UPDATE: You can read the text of the resolution here.

Fun facts about your clitoris:

• The clitoris rivals the penis in size.
• "The vaginal wall is, in fact, the clitoris."
• "If you lift the skin off the vagina on the side walls, you get the bulbs of the clitoris - triangular, crescental masses of erectile tissue."
• [T]he clitoris is more than just its glans - the "little hill"
• "There's nothing quite like the shape of a clitoris."
• "The glans are dense with nerve endings and receptors - all the vibration and sensation is there."
• The bulk of it is shaped like a pyramid.
• Its base forms the external genitalia or vulva; its triangular "walls" are wrapped around the urine-carrying tube known as the urethra and the vagina.
• When aroused, the whole structure becomes engorged.
• "They're designed to stimulate a much larger area."

No wonder, after reading this, Andrew Sullivan claims "clitoris envy."

Click here for an extremely educational video on the clitoris (internal and external).

The following was written by a good friend of mine about her experiences with vulvodynia, otherwise known as really bad, unexplained pain in your vagina. She wanted to write this anonymously, for obvious reasons ... like the fact that her treatment involved something called the "Ballsy Supercock." OK, seriously, this is an important women's health issue, and I urge you all to read her words. --Ann

I was always prone to yeast infections, so when the vaginal pain started, about a year and a half ago, I assumed that was what it was. The opening of my vagina was too raw for sex, and riding my bike was painful, too; any pressure made it feel like there was a sharp blade under my skin. I bought Monistat and treated it and thought nothing of it - until it didn't stop. About a month later, I finally went to my gynecologist, who told me I didn't have a yeast infection, and in fact she didn't know what I had, but I should just keep wearing cotton underpants and washing after I swam or had sex. Time passed, while I spent an inordinate amount of money on CVS yeast infection medication, but the pain never went fully away. After another six months or so, I went back to the doctor, who poked at my vulva with a Q-Tip and, when I almost jumped out of the stirrups with pain, told me I might have vulvar vestibulitis.

Vulvar vestibulitis is a form of vulvodynia, the umbrella term for "unexplained but really bad vaginal pain." It's characterized by burning pain and inflammation in the vaginal region due to a hugely increased development of nerve endings, sometimes - but not always -- traceable to an initial irritant (like, for example, over-the-counter yeast infection medication). It is very poorly understood and commonly misdiagnosed. Of the 13 million American women (that's one out of six!) who experience vulvodynia every year, it's estimated that half don't even know what they have. These numbers are particularly maddening given how debilitating the condition can be: Women with really bad vulvodynia can become unable to walk, wear pants, or sit without pain, and it can last for years or even for a lifetime. Imagine, by contrast, how the medical community would approach a disorder that made any friction unbearably painful for one in six penises.

That's right, spitting.

An HIV-positive man convicted of spitting into the eye and mouth of a Dallas police officer has been sentenced to 35 years in prison.

Because a jury found that Willie Campbell used his saliva as a deadly weapon, the 42-year-old will have to serve half his sentence before becoming eligible for parole. He was sentenced Wednesday.

Gross and assaulting? Definitely. But a deadly weapon?! Didn't we debunk the HIV-saliva thing like a millions years ago?

Thanks to Auden for the link.

The New York Times had a piece yesterday about the "Mad Pride" movement, featuring writer Liz Spikol, who discusses and writes about mental health issues and her experiences with bipolar disorder on YouTube and her blog, The Trouble with Spikol. Here's one of Spikol's videos:

Anyone have more to weigh in and/or experience with the movement?

Thanks to Lauren for the link.

Last week Public Citizen petitioned the FDA to ban Ortho Evra, the birth control patch, stating

the amount of estrogen released from the Ortho-Evra patch varies widely among individual women, and those who absorb too much were at greater risk for blood clots and and other painful side effects.

"The considerable safety concern of high-dose, variable estrogen exposure tips the balance of risks and benefits against the availability of Ortho-Evra as a contraceptive," wrote Sidney Wolfe, head of the research group.

This is just the most recent move in a long history of controversy over the patch. And looking back over the Feministing reader birth control poll, some of you out there are using it. Personally, I used the patch for 6 months when it was first released, to very mixed results.

What do you all think about the possible ban? The FDA is unlikely to do anything, they contend that the risks are well known, and properly disclosed. Is banning Ortho Evra the right move?

Judy Norsigian is co-founder of the Boston Women's Health Book Collective and co-author of the ground breaking Our Bodies, Ourselves published in 1970. Since its publication, women's groups around the world have developed cultural adaptations of, or other publications inspired by, Our Bodies, Ourselves. Most recently, women's groups in Albania, Russia, South Korea, and Tibet have produced new publications in book and other formats. Judy is also the co-author of Our Bodies, Ourselves: Menopause and most recently, Our Bodies, Ourselves: Pregnancy and Birth. Check out the Our Bodies, Ourselves blog when you can: http://ourbodiesourblog.org/

Judy speaks and writes frequently on a wide range of women's health concerns, including abortion and contraception, sexually transmitted infections, genetics and reproductive technologies, tobacco and women, women and health care reform, and midwifery advocacy.

Here's Judy...

I went to an awesome lecture last night about health--largely defined--and one of the take-aways that I wanted to turn-key is that there is a huge vitamin D deficiency among so many women who are afraid of getting too much sun. It may be contributing to some cancer increases and other autoimmune diseases. Experts recommend that you get 20 minutes of sun on 20% of your body between 11 am and 2 pm every day. After that it's good to protect yourself, but it's important to get a little bit of direct sunlight first.

So unchain yourself from those cubicles and computers and go outside right now!

Martha Ma is a food and media educator and producer, community chef and health counselor. She is the host and producer of "The Tasty Life," a bi-weekly television show on Manhattan Public Access channel 57, and the editor of the e-newsletter, "Eater's Digest."

Martha is also executive producer of the Food for Thought Film Festival. If you're in the NYC area this weekend, check out the last weekend of the festival at Cooper Union's Wollman Auditorium, 51 Astor Place at Third Ave. Feature films include King Corn, Black Gold, and Life and Debt. Shorts include The Meatrix I, II and II 1/2 and The True Cost of Food.

Here's Martha...

I know I don't. And it's not the duck lips speculum exam, or the awkwardness of sitting half naked in a rough paper gown, or the oh-so-personal questions they ask you. I just moved to a new city, so I had the fun job of trying to find a new provider (not that I had found one I liked in my last city either). Many of you are probably familiar with the process. First you have to ask around to everyone you know for a recommendation of someone good. Then once you've collected the references, you have to call all of those providers (maybe after you've googled them to see what other random people have to say) and see if they accept your insurance. Talk about rejection. Then, if you're lucky enough to find someone, you have to wait who knows how long to make an appointment. So fun, and we haven't even gotten to the gyno's office yet!

I know I was nervous from the moment I got in my car (in which I had to drive 45 minutes to get to someone who accepted my insurance). It was a little absurd really, I was kind of sweaty and my heart was pounding. For all the writing and advocating I do for sexual health and reproductive rights, I was a mess. Maybe it was the uncertainty of the whole experience, not knowing if the provider was going to be friendly, totally dismissive, or just rude. I've had all of those experiences and never been truly satisfied with a provider. I know that being queer adds a whole other level to it (why aren't you on birth control?!?) but I'm sure some of you straight women have similar feelings.

Then there is the part where you try and squeeze in all those questions that have been accumulating over the past year. What about this? Is this normal? How can I treat this? I've had a variety of experiences in terms of response to my questioning (and I always have A LOT of questions) but in most situations the provider always feels super rushed, which doesn't put me at ease. What if I forget something?

For a lot of these reasons, I choose to see a midwife (a nurse midwife actually). Did you know you can go to a midwife for regular gynecological care? You can. It definitely made things better, but not perfect.

What have your experiences been with gynecological care?

Cartoon from Natalie Dee

The New York Times published an interesting article yesterday about the continuing story of the Bush Administration trying to protect drug companies from lawsuits being brought against them for drugs that were approved by the FDA.

The Bush administration has argued strongly in favor of the doctrine, which holds that the F.D.A. is the only agency with enough expertise to regulate drug makers and that its decisions should not be second-guessed by courts. The Supreme Court is to rule on a case next term that could make pre-emption a legal standard for drug cases. The court already ruled in February that many suits against the makers of medical devices like pacemakers are pre-empted.

But, what happens when the company isn’t being honest? If the FDA doesn’t have the information, or doesn’t do its job investigating the information, where does that leave people?

In the case of Ortho Evra (the birth control patch), that question is very much up in the air. When making the results public, Johnson and Johnson applied a “correction factor� to the results of a test showing the higher levels of estrogen in the patch. An attorney for the company explains:

“The judgment was made by the pharmacokeneticists at the time that in doing the calculation, it was probably appropriate to make that correction,� Bob Tucker, a lawyer representing Johnson & Johnson, said in an interview Thursday. “Later on when people looked at it in a different time frame, they concluded that probably the correction shouldn’t be applied.�

Uh, thanks for clearing that up. The patch was then released and advertised with the incorrect information. And since technically the FDA had access to this information (rather hidden in the report), Johnson and Johnson claims they did what they’re supposed to. Only after women started getting sick and dying, did the FDA start to pay attention. And a subsequent study revealed that Ortho Evra can give twice the risk of blood clots as birth control pills.

But, if the Bush administration and the drug companies get their way, consumers won’t be able to sue in cases like this. That’s just ridiculous. Cases against Johnson and Johnson are pending, waiting to see if they can move forward at all. In the meantime, we're all stuck hoping the greedy drug manufacturers and the overworked FDA don't kill us.

I was hanging out with some Skidmore gals after my talk there Tuesday and we got to talking about that old, itchy foe, yeast infections. One of the pre-med students had just prepared a paper about alternative treatments, including...drum roll please...sticking yogurt in your vagina ("not strawberry, not vanilla," she warned us, "plain yogurt.") A couple of the other female students freaked out at this suggestion (ahem, Carly, ahem). I googled it today and, lo and behold, it's a bonafide treatment (along with garlic and tea tree oil).

So level with me, what do you all think about these alternative va-jay-jay remedies? Do you use them or resort to the man's Monistat? I went to the Monistat website, and in addition to lots of smiling women pics, I found this warning:

CAUTION: If you are taking the prescription blood-thinning medicine Warfarin, ask a doctor or pharmacist before using any MONISTAT® products, because bleeding or bruising may occur when miconazole nitrate is taken at the same time as warfarin.

Makes good ol' yogurt sound pretty reassuring, right?

There's no question that the personal is the political, even when it comes to our most individuated health and wellness choices. But it's got me wondering, is it "less feminist" to resort to store-bought cures or is this one of those things that we should lay off on politicizing?

*Note to all: douching is bullshit. If you don't know, now you know.

A Republican California assemblyman proposed a bill that would deem pregnant women "temporarily disabled" in the third trimester of their pregnancy and allow them access to handicapped parking. The bill failed, but I think this is really interesting.

The classification of differently-abled people is usually pretty stigmatizing. Disability rights activists have talked about the problem with being overly protective of differently-abled people while overlooking systemic problems in the care of people with disabilities and the lack of appropriate legislation to protect their individual rights.

People with disabilities are constantly fighting against a misinformed public, discrimination and the often erroneous belief that differently-abled people are helpless and can't make decisions for themselves. It is not OK, but we can agree that these assumptions are prevalent. So if that is the case, and we have politicians that want to classify pregnant women as "disabled" these same misconceptions apply on some level. There is then the belief that pregnant women are unable to take care of themselves, make choices for themselves, etc. Is the answer for society's mistreatment of both differently-abled people and pregnant women legislation that will classify women as "temporarily disabled?"

I don't think so. But then you think about what is possible, given the current laws with regard to differently-abled people and it is true that pregnant women sometimes have special needs and those needs should be protected by the government.

I just have a problem with calling people "disabled" and to extend that category to pregnant women. It is infantilizing, something the legal system loves to do to "vulnerable" populations through demoralizing and poorly phrased legislation. Isn't there a way to protect people's rights and allow them fair access depending on their abilities without saying they are disabled? And I am not overly concerned with the terms alone-but the meanings and assumptions that are attached to them.

A survey released yesterday revealed that nearly half of maternity wards in the UK turned away women in labor last year:

Of the 147 NHS Trusts that provide maternity services, 103 provided figures. Of these, 42 percent reported having closed or having been forced to divert women to another site at least once last year because of capacity problems.

A Department of Health spokesperson responded:

"It is difficult precisely to predict when a mother will go into labour and sometimes, at times of peak demand, maternity units do temporarily divert women to nearby facilities. When this does happen, it is often only for a few hours and to ensure mother and baby can receive the best care possible."

Okay, but can't a few hours be critical in some cases? Deputy general secretary of the Royal College of Midwives Louise Silverton said: "The key issue here is what the women want. Women want to know and develop a relationship with their midwife and not feel as if they are on a production line. Midwives want to be able to deliver the best possible individualised care and not feel like they are working in a baby factory."

This seems pretty crazy to me. Has anyone had this happen to them or someone they know?

The FDA has promised a speedy review of Gardasil, the HPV vaccine, for women over 26 years old.

The designation means that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration is expected to make its decision on the marketing application within 6 months, rather than within the agency's typical 10-month review period.

Nice. Because let's not forget that 25% of women in the U.S. (yes, grown-ups too) have HPV. Now we just have to see if the FDA sticks to their schedule. Hopefully the "controversy" factor will be a bit less since this about adult women.

Ok gals, time to get personal. (Is there any other way to do feminism?) My struggle to find the perfect period product is no secret - I've gone from pads to tampons to Instead to the DivaCup. And yet I have issues with all of them. So dear readers, I'm looking to you to illuminate me (and each other!) about the best period products out there. Tell us what you like, what you love, even the methods you loathe. Maybe you'll inspire converts to your menstrual cause!

Related Posts: DIY feminine hygiene products, Madeleine Shaw: Flow Lover & Founder of Lunapads

Remember that cool documentary, At Your Cervix, that I posted about a few months back? Well they are still in the process of raising money, so help out if you can, and go to this event in NYC on March 21st if you're there!

Bellydancing, Cocktails and a Film About Cervixes
Friday, March 21, 2008
Doors 6:30, Show/Screening 7 pm
Collective Unconscious
279 Church Street, New York City

Hello folks! It's almost spring and we're throwing a party in honor of that film we keep telling you about. Hope you'll come and see some clips, have a drink, give what you can and enjoy a great night of performances and celebration. We're not finished, but this event will help us get there!

In the name of improving pelvic exams for all patients, hope to see you!

Amy Jo, co-writer, director & producer

To update on last week's report that one in four girls has contracted an STD through sexual contact, I wanted to add some other feelings that are running through my head. As you may recall, I was upset that they had termed it "sex infection," (terminology they continue to use via this editorial) which I felt was misleading and made it sound pretty fucking awful. But I will say, I do believe the NYTimes was trying to do the right thing by raising awareness about an issue and informing the public.

The problem is that since there are so many assumptions about young women - and especially young women of color and their assumed sexual promiscuity - the news media has to do more to actually influence public opinion or inspire people to do something. Dismal stats just make us all feel helpless. Looking at racist and sexist policy and how that influences the behavior of young men and women to see where key interventions might be possible, might be a place to start.

The big issue for me here is that young women of color are rarely, if ever, on the cover of any newspaper. The press doesn't count the news affecting their lives as real news, so to only report about women of color when it is because they have "sex infection" feeds a racist and sexist media, that is already inundated with overly sexed images of women of color. Logic only follows that these same women have the burden of "sex infection," due to their shameful over-sexuality.

So then where do we go? HALF of the African American girls studied had contracted some form of STD. That is a staggering statistic and it is hard to blame such a clear discrepancy on personal behavior and choice. Abstinence-only policies, funding cuts and poor educational systems hit hardest among young black women. And they don't deserve it.

Please put any resources or organizing efforts on this issue in comments.

I actually think this tampon commercial is kind of cute. I know that "beaver" isn't exactly a positive term for women's genitalia, but the beaver in the commercial is cute and having fun. That's something I can get behind. It just seems...cheeky to me more than anything. What do others think?

(If you want a really bad example of a commercial featuring animals to describe vaginas, take a look at those Vagisil ads from a while back.)

h/t Broadsheet.

UN Dispatch and RH Reality Check are hosting an online salon, "A New Agenda for Girls' and Women's Health and Rights," this week and next about what global plans the new U.S. president should be creating to improve the status of the rights and health of girls and women worldwide. I'm thrilled to be a participant along with a number of intelligent minds including journalists, authors and leaders within the international women's movement.

Adrienne Germain, the president of the International Women's Health Coalition, kicked off the salon on Monday and we've had some great discussion since. Make sure to check it out on either site.

To update on yesterday's post about 1 in 4 girls having an STD, the NYTimes today led with this as the title:

Now, two issues come up for me.

*I am all for raising awareness and educating the masses about the potential threats of STD's, but I support fair and balanced coverage and to not unnecessarily scare people. Using the term "infected" sounds like there has been an outbreak of birdflu and feeds into the sci-fi notion that some incurable disease is spreading that we are powerless against. We (by which I mean feminists) have known for while that young women were at a high risk of HPV, but no one wants to listen when it is preventative. No, instead they want to cut funding for sex ed programs and teach children to abstain. (Sorry to generalize there, but you get my point.)

*As several smart Feministing commenters noted yesterday, where is the study that shows how young women are getting these STDs? Why is the burden and spotlight only on young women? What are young men doing that is leading to "high risk" behaviors and leading to young women being "infected?" I think it is important to look at the risks for young women and educate and spread resources accordingly, but it is very short-sighted to assume this is a problem only for young women.

That is what I have to say about that.