The video highlights the disparity in funding and research between male and female-oriented healthcare, emphasizing the lack of equitable investment in women's health despite women comprising over half the global population. With a significant portion of health tech investments failing to focus on women's health, the femtech sector emerges as a promising solution to bridge this gap. Innovative products, such as wristbands and bodysuits, are being developed to address women's specific health issues like menopause and menstrual cramps, although investor interest remains limited.

The discussion sheds light on the historical and societal factors contributing to the lack of funding for women's health. With predominantly male investors, many women's health issues remain misunderstood or undervalued, creating barriers for female entrepreneurs seeking investment. Despite these challenges, a shift in mindset is starting to occur, especially in light of policy changes like the overturning of Roe v Wade, spurring corporations to reevaluate their approach to women's health strategies.

Main takeaways from the video:

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Key Vocabularies and Common Phrases:

1. predominantly [prɪˈdɑmɪnəntli] - (adverb) - Mainly; for the most part. - Synonyms: (mainly, chiefly, predominantly)

They're predominantly used by men with erectile dysfunction.

2. coagulated [koʊˈæɡjʊˌleɪtɪd] - (adjective) - Having come together and become solid. - Synonyms: (solidified, clumped, thickened)

I realized that the women's health innovation industry was not coagulated.

3. disjointed [dɪsˈdʒɔɪntɪd] - (adjective) - Lacking a coherent sequence or connection. - Synonyms: (disconnected, incoherent, fragmented)

We were so disjointed, in fact, we kept seeing people reinvent the same product.

4. neglect [nɪˈɡlɛkt] - (noun) - A lack of proper care or attention. - Synonyms: (disregard, negligence, inattention)

The way I look at it is when there's been a taboo, it means there's neglect.

5. cumbersome [ˈkʌmbərsəm] - (adjective) - Large or heavy and therefore difficult to carry or use; unwieldy. - Synonyms: (awkward, unwieldy, burdensome)

It was a noisy, big, cumbersome product.

6. deflation [dɪˈfleɪʃən] - (noun) - A reduction in magnitude or importance. - Synonyms: (reduction, diminishment, decrease)

And then all of a sudden, that's a huge deflation of the intuition part.

7. proportionately [prəˈpɔrʃənɪtli] - (adverb) - In a way that corresponds in size or amount to something else; relatively. - Synonyms: (comparatively, relatively, correspondingly)

Even migraines disproportionately affect women.

8. intuition [ˌɪntuˈɪʃən] - (noun) - The ability to understand something immediately, without the need for conscious reasoning. - Synonyms: (instinct, perception, insight)

And then all of a sudden, that's a huge deflation of the intuition part.

9. taboo [təˈbu] - (noun) - A social or cultural prohibition or restriction. - Synonyms: (prohibition, restriction, ban)

These issues are taboo issues.

10. disparity [dɪˈspærəti] - (noun) - A great difference. - Synonyms: (difference, inequality, discrepancy)

The discussion highlights the disparity in funding and research between male and female-oriented healthcare.

90% of investors dont understand the demand for the $1 trillion femtech industry heres why

Blue pills like these are some of the most recognisable, well researched and well funded drugs on the market. They're predominantly used by men with erectile dysfunction. 4.3 million men in the UK experience erectile problems. And now a female oriented drug with as much money and research behind it? Well, there isn't one. And that's a pattern that tracks right across women's healthcare. Investment in research for women's health is less than men's, even though we make up more than half of the population. Of the nearly 3000 health tech investments in the US between 2011 and 2020, only 3% have gone specifically towards women's health. But a relatively new sector of tech, described as femtech, is trying to change that.

This isn't a watch. It's a wristband that combats hot flushes usually experienced by women going through the menopause. And this isn't any old bodysuit. It uses a combination of heat and vibrations to tackle bad cramps that are often suffered by people whilst they're on their period. And it's all controlled through an app on your phone. It's estimated that the women's health sector will be worth $1 trillion by 2027. But investors aren't necessarily jumping on board. So why is that? And are women's society and the economy more widely missing out as a result? All through my life, my health needs have been different to those of a male. At some point in the future, I might choose to have children. I'll probably go through the menopause and will likely continue to have health issues until I'm this age.

So that makes me, along with roughly 50% of the population, a lifelong customer for products targeting the female health market. We're not a niche market, but we are a market with big data gaps. Several analytics platforms have been founded in the last couple of years to try and tackle that problem, including FEM health insights. I realized that the women's health innovation industry was not coagulated. We were so disjointed, in fact, we kept seeing people reinvent the same product. Why is there 20 organic cotton tampon companies and. Well, maybe one of those reasons is that they don't know about the other 19. We couldn't find each other, we couldn't support each other, we couldn't form partnerships, et cetera. What happened after about two years of running this organization was I found myself sitting upon a lot of data. And data is gold. Nowadays, it is the new oil.

Last year, after Roe v Wade was overturned in the United States, we noticed this huge uptick in corporations asking themselves, what is our women's health strategy? Femtech is getting more attention now than it's ever had before. This includes programs to pair femtech startups with mentors and investors, and region specific organisations. As of 2023, there are seven women's health specific investment funds globally, with around $125 million between them and notable names getting involved, including the bank of America, Eli Lilly and the American Hospital association. And the extra financing is having the desired impact.

Over 60% of femtech startups were founded between 2018 and 2022, while the number of femtech companies has grown by 1000% in the last ten years, the breadth of products in the femtech space is expanding too. Tania Boehler founded Elvie back in 2013 after she noticed a lack of products designed for new mothers. When I started Lv, I didn't really have a plan in mind. I saw a problem I wanted to solve, which is the fact that particularly for pregnant women and new mums, there's nothing in terms of pelvic floor health. There were these horrible medical devices and I thought, well, why can't we design something that's effective and fun and easy to use? Once we'd launched that product, I recognized that all technology for women was horribly designed, but really nothing worse than the breast pump.

It was a noisy, big, cumbersome product. So again, I thought, in the era of driverless cars, why can't we have better tech? How do you get to 2013 and you still don't have a breast pump that works effectively? I mean, it's kind of crazy, right? But these issues are taboo issues. Anything to do our products have to do with the breasts, they're to do with vaginas. So people don't like to talk about it. The way I look at it is when there's been a taboo, it means there's neglect, which means there's opportunity for innovation.

And it's not just the obviously female issues where my needs are different to men's. Women's health is not just periods and babies. It is also bone health, gut health, brain health, heart health. Women are not little men. We really do need to dedicate ourselves to not just studying human health, but teasing that apart into male health and female health as well. Research shows that there are sex and gender differences across all aspects of health, from autism to heart attacks and even HIV and Alzheimer's, because the way male and female cells behave are different.

Even migraines disproportionately affect women. The male body has long been considered the default for creating health solutions, and it's a long held belief. Caroline Criado Perez, writer of the acclaimed book invisible Women, traced the habit of prioritizing men's health over women's ancient greece. 90% of decisions about health and nutrition, and everything is taken by women in the household. Why do you think it's the case that women don't necessarily have access to those funds or companies that are women health focused? Women tend to have the ideas, develop the innovation, and go it alone, don't even think about seeking investment.

When they do, they find that investors, 90% of whom are men, don't understand the health needs that women are trying to address. For a long time, we didn't talk about the menopause. We didn't talk about periods, infertility. You know, those are things that people dealt with on their own. But that's changed. You need an investor that says, I know this is an issue. I've been talking about this, thinking about this, dreaming about this, looking for a deal just like this. And unfortunately, a lot of times what happens is women's health companies will go to the pitch room, to the boardroom, and say, hi, I'm working on heavy menstrual bleeding.

And when you have 90% plus of investors being male in the United States, at least, all of a sudden, you have a room full of people who say, I don't know if I even know what that is or if I'm passionate about it. I don't even know if it's a real issue. And then all of a sudden, that's a huge deflation of the intuition part. And then if you don't have the data to back it up, you can't get behind it. And so that's one of many reasons why investment is just not flowing into women's health yet, even though it's a trillion dollar market.

But we're not just talking about benefiting women when it comes to taking female health more seriously. A study by a non profit organization focusing on funding for women's health research found that a $300 million investment into improving female health could generate around $13 billion. You only need one investor. There are enough men out there who knew, because they had wives or mothers who had experienced problems, that this was a real issue. It's good to see that there are now some investor companies who are focusing specifically on femtech products. So that gives you some encouragement.

The Femtech landscape report by FemHealth Insights lists 18 different types of products that can fit into the femtech bracket, covering everything from medical devices and digital health to clothes. And there has been a huge boom in innovation in the last couple of years, which has led to some pretty exciting products on the market. This headband has been designed to help with symptoms suffered by people whilst they're on their period. This band at the front sends signals to the part of the brain controlling emotions, whilst this band at the back sends waves to the part controlling pain.

The user sits for 20 minutes each day in the run up to their period, and it would tackle symptoms. Sustainable period products are also being developed which allow sanitary towels and their wrapping to be flushed down the toilet, preventing them from ending up in landfill. The femtech market has also seen the growth in women using female specific health apps. This one period tracking app has 11 million monthly users. But are there any risks associated with the sector accelerating at such a fast pace? When these health tech experts think that they can copy and paste their strategy from cardiology or gastroenterology into gynecology, it just doesn't work.

We do see people coming in, raising a whole bunch of money, and then failing. The investors that were on the fence about it are going to say, well, we don't want to touch it. And so I really do recommend, to really make sure that they're advising with femtech experts, because the more that we assume that women's health is like the rest of healthcare, the more mistakes. The data suggests that the femtech sector is flourishing, and that the benefit to investors and companies getting involved in the space and women more widely, could be massive. There was more homework done by some of these investors. They'd understand why this is an area that is ripe for growth and investment.

I think we'll see a few big winners. I think they'll naturally be some consolidation in this space and ultimately everybody's after Holy Grail, which is, can you become that first ever global tech brand for women's health? Our industry is filled with collaborators and optimism, and I'm really excited to see what comes next for us.

Technology, Healthcare, Innovation, Femtech, Women'S Health, Investment, Cnbc International