What You Need to Know about Femtech
Women make up nearly half of the world’s population, yet research shows that men receive two-thirds of the funding for diseases that primarily affect one gender. For example, substance abuse, which mainly affects men, gets a significant portion of these funds. Femtech emerged to address this gender imbalance. Here, we explore what femtech is, its importance to women, and highlight some companies in this exciting field.
What is Femtech?
The term “femtech” was first introduced by entrepreneur Ida Tin in 2016. It generally refers to technologies designed to support women’s healthcare needs. Innovations in this rapidly growing field usually fall into the following categories:
Breastfeeding: Includes apps or software that notify parents of the best times to feed their child.
Chronic Conditions & Hormonal Disorders: Covers conditions like endometriosis, fibroids, and polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS).
Fertility & Birth Control: Includes fertility tracking apps, which make up over a third of femtech products.
General Healthcare: Ranges from breast and cervical cancer screening to diagnostic services.
Menopause: Products like special underwear to help women stay comfortable during hot flashes.
Menstruation & Period Care Products: Includes natural pads or sanitary napkins and period tracking apps.
Pelvic Health: Helps with issues like pelvic organ prolapse and urinary incontinence.
Pregnancy & Post Pregnancy: Tracks physical and mental well-being during and after pregnancy.
Sexual Wellness: Ranges from virtual resources to social apps that provide safe spaces to discuss issues like female anatomy and surviving assault.
Why is Femtech Important?
Women have unique healthcare needs and challenges. Irregular periods can cause chronic pain or signal more serious issues. Women considering pregnancy face healthcare risks for themselves and their future children, making prenatal and postnatal care crucial. Additionally, women are more prone to certain diseases and conditions like anxiety, depression, irritable bowel syndrome, and breast cancer. Many of these can be treated or prevented if detected early, and various femtech products aim to do just that.
Examples of Femtech
Clue: A period tracking app that uses algorithms to predict periods, fertile windows, and premenstrual syndrome. It also informs users about the likelihood of becoming pregnant and predicts symptoms like cramps and headaches based on user input.
BIOMILQ: Provides a milk product cultured from human mammary epithelial cells, useful for women facing infant feeding challenges.
Elvie: Offers products like a wearable breast pump and a pelvic floor exercise tool.
Knix: An alternative to pads, tampons, and menstrual cups. Their washable cotton underwear can absorb the equivalent of 10 regular tampons.
Natural Cycles: An FDA-approved fertility tracking app similar to Clue.
Conclusion
While women have made significant progress in modern society, healthcare still often fails to address their unique issues and concerns adequately. Femtech aims to bridge this gap through technology, offering solutions from apps to specialized products.