Despite not being at par with men healthcare technologies, as a part of the human population believes, there have been some great moments in history which changed women healthcare forever. Let us have a look at some key moments in the history of women healthcare.
1. Ban of Poisonous Cosmetics and Potentially Dangerous Drugs
The cosmetic products and drugs used by women were not monitored for their potentially harmful effects before 1938. The cosmetic and pharmaceutical companies made most of the situation as they made cosmetics and drugs which contained potentially harmful substances. Adding these harmful substances improved the results of the product, be it eye shadows or the cough syrups at that time. However, these products had long term side effects. An example of such cosmetic product was Lash Lure, a dye that was used on eye lashes. This product contained a potentially harmful chemical called paraphenylenediamine, which could cause blindness. An example of such medicine is Bayer Heroin, syrup which actually contained heroin. This lead to more effectiveness in short term, but as we all know, it made women addictive to it.
Things changed for good in 1938 when Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act were passed in 1938. These made things like putting up the list of ingredients in the drug, confirming no long term harm of cosmetic products etc. compulsory. This brought an end to the era of dark in women healthcare, as women chose their products considering the side effects they possessed resulting in impressive disquisition. This is definitely a landmark event in the history of women healthcare.
2. Birth Control Pill
Population explosion is a problem in today’s world. Consider what the scenario would have been had there not been birth control pills. The making of birth control pills ensured the checking of human population, though not as much as it was needed. However, the event can be considered as a medical revolution accompanied with a social one as women now had the right to select whether they wanted to bear a child or not. Women had the freedom and they were safe from being forced to bear a child in absence of safety measures. Many women had died previously because of conceiving too many babies and pregnancy complications. The birth control pill ensured these problems were taken care of.
3. Discovery of PMS
Premenstrual Syndrome, referred to in short as PMS was an unknown thing until 1931. Although the guessing of existence of this kind of syndrome dates back to 1st and 2nd century, when Greek physician Soranus studied many cases of peaking tension in women before their periods, the reason behind this was unknown. New York based gynecologist Robert Tilden Frank delivered a research paper which stated observation of common symptoms in women which he termed as ‘premenstrual disturbance’ and guessed it to be caused by ovarian cycle. The precise term “premenstrual syndrome” was coined by British physician Dr. Katharina Dalton in 1953.
4. Vaccines for German Measles
German measles, also known as Rubella was more likely to occur to pregnant women. A vaccine for the disease was made in 1971, bringing an end to the problem.
5. Hormone Replacement for Menopause Symptoms
Women suffered a number of problems after menopause, mainly due to the absence of hormones like estrogen and progesterone. To tackle this problem, Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) was introduced in the year 1942 via a drug called Premarin. It was a popular choice among women for a long time before its side effects were understood and its use became selective. A number of therapies were then discovered to tackle this problem.
6. Vaccine for HPV
The vaccine for human papilloma virus, HPV, was made in 2006 and has been protecting women against the virus, which is said to be the cause of cervical cancer.
These are some key moments in the history of women healthcare.