Challenging the Flawed Assumption Excluding Women from Health Studies

Revisiting our perception of women’s health and fitness

Imagine if what you thought you knew about women’s health and fitness was suddenly put to the test. This is the reality for many researchers, including those in the field of exercise physiology. They are now questioning decades of research that either excluded women participants or significantly reduced their numbers in a myriad of experiments.

Such practices have influenced, possibly inaccurately, our understanding of issues like athletic performance and the benefits of exercise. It was often assumed that results from testing men could be generalized to women. And it’s not just outdated studies; even research from the past 20 years falls into this erroneous practice.

Why were women excluded from research studies?

The main reason for excluding women from scientific studies was uncertainty over how to account for potential fluctuations related to menstruation or hormonal birth control. Without clear understanding of how these factors might affect variables like muscle function, researchers often included fewer women in their studies, or none at all.

This is reminiscent of times when women were disallowed from participating in the Olympics, and actively discouraged from sports participation due to unfounded concerns about potential damage to their bodies or reproductive health.

Challenging the assumption

In 2018, two graduate students sparked a critical reevaluation of these deeply rooted assumptions. The students explored variables like vascular health and cardiac function during exercise, and whether these were affected by menstrual or oral contraceptive cycles. Their findings revealed no significant day-to-day differences.

Comparable findings have now been observed in several other areas of exercise physiology, including the impact of menstrual cycle phase on responses to resistance exercise training. It turns out, excluding women from research studies may have been an unwarranted practice.

As a result, we now face a major knowledge gap. We still have much to learn about the similarities and differences between men and women in various health and fitness aspects.

Filling in the blanks

For researchers, this knowledge gap presents an exciting opportunity to deepen our understanding and discover valuable information that can enhance everyone’s life.

Today, increasing numbers of researchers are filling in these large gaps in scientific knowledge, developing new information that everyone can rely on. Some of these findings are revealing significant differences between women and men, while others are confirming areas of similarity. All of this contributes to our growing pool of vital knowledge.

As we continue to address the barriers to including women in research studies, we can broaden our work scope. For instance, we can start comparing female participants across different stages of life.

We encourage all researchers across various fields of science to do the same. Look at the measures you’re studying and see if you’ve been missing out on crucial information. Science evolves as new evidence becomes available, and it’s time to use this valuable information to learn more for the benefit of everyone.