The Lowdown’s September Newsletter

Hi everyone, 

I’ve just returned from getting married and a glorious honeymoon, with Keiran, my partner of over 10 years. ‘Patient’ is not often a word used to describe me, but the wait was worth it. Our wedding had everything I love; cocktails, drum and bass and I even cycled to the ceremony, in the rain, on the second day of my period. Brave. 

Speaking of periods, this month our newsletter is sponsored by Evana who you may remember from our community event last year. But the content is our own, and you can see our content policy for more details. Read on to find out more!

Things we learnt recently…

There’s a medicine that can reduce your period flow, and it’s available over the counter

62% of The Lowdown community report having heavy periods, which are defined as blood loss of 80 ml or more over a cycle. This is quite hard to measure if you ask me, but the equivalent to two shot glasses. 

It’s more important to define heavy periods as those that interfere with your physical, social and material quality of life. If that’s the case, don’t suffer – there are plenty of options to manage heavy periods from hormonal contraceptives (like our best rated Hormonal IUS) to taking ibuprofen (which, fun fact, may actually reduce your period flow by around 25% according to an original 1980’s research study).

Another great option is tranexamic acid; a non hormonal medication that reduces blood loss by supporting your body’s blood clots to stay in place, which results in reduced menstrual blood loss. 

It’s finally available over the counter at your pharmacy under the brand name Evana, so if you’re struggling to get a GP appointment, check it out.

60% of people with PCOS report high to severe mental health impacts

It’s PCOS awareness month and we wanted to shed some light on one of the lesser known symptoms of polycystic ovary syndrome. Often when we talk about PCOS, we talk about irregular periods, hirsutism (excess hair growth), and weight gain but mental health is another thing that comes up a lot. 

A recent article in The Guardian deep dives into why people with PCOS may experience mental health issues. It could actually be down to biological factors. For example, higher levels of androgens and insulin resistance can contribute to anxiety and mood changes.

Pain relief for coil fittings is now available in the US following new guidelines

You’ve heard us banging on about pain relief for years especially when talking about coil fittings. We’ll say it again –  everyone should be offered pain relief during a coil fitting and the different options can be discussed with your clinician.

In the UK, the FSRH updated their guidelines in 2023 to reflect this. However, in the US, they have been slightly slower to catch on but we’re pleased to say that their guidelines have recently been updated this month in line with ours.

This comes at a time where there’s a higher demand for birth control since the overturning of Roe V Wade and precarity around rights in the lead up to the presidential election. If you’re reading this from the states, please register to vote 

In the news…

  Men who take Sodium Valproate (a treatment for epilepsy and bipolar disorder) are being told to use contraception with their partner, switch medications 3 months before trying to conceive and to refrain from donating sperm. This is due to potential risks of their children developing neurodevelopment disorders. 

A new study in Denmark has discovered that long term exposure to road traffic noise and air pollution could impact fertility in men over 37 and women over 35. There’s more research to be done here, but if these results are further validated in the future, then this could prove there are fertility related health benefits of regulating noise and air pollution. 

If anyone caught the recent VMAs you may have seen that Katy Perry mentioned being on her period during her speech. Direct quote from her: ‘Oh my gosh. I did that all on my first day of my period, too. Can you believe it?’ What a legend. 

Review of the month: new boobs, same me!

   New product alert!   

Along with our team of medical experts, we’re always here to call out the BS. Lots of people come to us as part of their research into whether products actually work, and what they should look for – which is why we dedicated an area to ‘Products’ on our site so you can see what our doctors and community approve

We’ve recently added ScreenMe’s vaginal swab test for those who want to learn more about their vaginal microbiome, and we’ve also published a new article on the topic to answer your burning (pun not intended) questions. 

Post of the month

When you run a women’s health startup you get some great WhatsApps

That’s all for this month, till the next one!