The AthenaEUm
Issue 83.3 November 2020 Acadia University
The AthenaEUm
Female & Sexual Health Rylie Moscato
Editor in Chief
Axel Eschholz Jack Spicer Dylan Abel Benjamin O’Toole Soyini Edwards
Managing Editor Copy Editor Business Manager Productions Manager Photography Manager
SECTION EDITORS Kate Robart Jenna Bouwman Tanvi Dabas Max Gustafson Katie Winters Liddy Greer
Arts & Culture News Editor Science Creative Opinions Sports & Wellness
“All the news from the hill” Acadia’s Student Newspaper 1887-2020
assault are not only experienced in the entertainment industry. Women in Canada experience these hardships every single day. In a 2017 study from the Government of Canada titled “Harassment and sexual violence in the workplace”, it was found that 60% of respondents have experienced harassment in some form or another in the workplace. Around 30% of respondents had experienced sexual harassment, 21% experienced violence and 3% experienced sexual violence. In regard to sexual harassment and violence, 94% of respondents were women. After reaching out to female students at Acadia University, the commonality of crimes at workplaces against women can be further supported. Violence against women is in our backyard and can no longer be ignored. Thank you to the brave women who shared their stories with The Athenaeum and Acadia Community: “One time when complaining about pain in my knees to a co-worker, my manager yelled out, ‘Don’t worry, we know you get down to give blowjobs to everyone!’. Not only was this degrading, but the comment was shouted for all of my co-workers and any customers in the building to hear.” - Olivia Knowles (Biology Student) “The dress code at one workplace was fairly relaxed and we were allowed clothing that was considered to be more casual. I wore shorts to work one day and they ended up being slightly shorter than my apron which went past my knee. From the front, it looked like I was naked. When my manager noticed, I apologized because I did not realize that the apron went past my knees and he responded: ‘That’s okay, we will get more tips if you look like this’.” - Harper T. “We had to do this interview in one of my classes. I was working with a male student to interview an older man for the class. The individual we were interviewing refused to make eye contact or direct his responses towards me, even when I was the one asking questions. It was like I wasn’t in the room. He then followed by stating that all of Windsor’s problems (which we were discussing in the interview) began when women started driving.” - Claire Leffler (CODE Student)
The Reality of Being A Woman in the Workplace By: Rylie Moscato
For the past few years, there has been a push for more women in the workplace, especially in fields that are predominately male. While more female representation is needed in spaces dominated by men, the reality of being a woman in these workplaces is often ignored or disregarded. There have been famous women in the media, such as Lena Dunham or Gabrielle Union, who have come forward with personal experiences of sexual assault and harassment that they have endured while at work; however, harassment and 2 Editorial
“A co-worker once cornered me in the break room and tried to force himself on me. I was lucky enough to escape the situation, thanks to someone who was in the bathroom at the right time. It was my second week there.” - Jada F. (Chemistry Student) “I have had colleagues who would rub my back and whisper things in my ear while we talked. I never allowed my colleagues to enter my personal space or touch me. They behaved unprofessionally and made me feel weak.” - Eva Munez (Biology Student) “I am hoping to go into sports law, specifically for hockey. There is this union called the NHL players association where all registered agents and lawyers are usually affiliated. In this union, there is only one woman. When looking at specific companies
within the union, all female employees are only at the secretarial level. These women go towards the companies’ statistics when looking at whether women are properly represented, yet only one individual at one company has equal standing to the men in these companies. While this story isn’t about violence, it shows how even though it is 2020, there is still changes to be made.” - Hunter Murchison- Doggart (Politcs Student) Acadia University is much smaller than most universities in Canada, but still has students who have been harassed, objectified and demeaned in the workplace. Even if the students in this article are Acadia’s only students who have faced workplace harassment, it still doesn’t make any of this okay or anomalous. Bigger universities have more students and may have more stories of this kind. As we move outward, think about how many women in our country or worldwide might share in these workplace experiences. Yet, as a society we often forget about the reality of harassment in the workplace. Just because women don’t talk about their own instances does not mean they don’t experience them, not everyone is okay with sharing. Society has always taught women to stay silent, so for the most part that is what women do. Those who do speak out are often criticized in the media or called liars because the individuals they are accusing are often well known or in a position of power. The #METOO movement that first gained traction in 2016 was essential for women who had been silenced. They finally felt supported and safe enough to share their personal stories. #METOO swept across borders uniting women of all nationalities. Eventually, the movement died down, as all movements eventually do. While the message of the movement still remains, so does the stigma surrounding speaking out. I’m sure #METOO will be re-ignited again years from now, but if people revert back to silence during this lull in momentum, nothing will be different years from now. If these students’ stories tell you anything, it is to be alert to the situations taking place in your community. I challenge anyone reading this to ask your friends and family if they have been treated similarly. Chances are that someone will have a story to share, small or big. No matter the level or harassment, it is important to listen to community members who confide in you. Women need to stick together. This conversation is not limited to women. There are lessons for men here as well. If you are a man who behaves like the men in these stories, it is not okay. If you are a man who witnesses behavior that targets women, do not be a silent bystander. If you are a man who faces harassment or sexual violence in the workplace, you are not alone. You can always be part of the movement for change. Keep the conversation going on social media, with your family and at school. Strive for a better world where women are well-represented and feel safe going to their jobs. Most importantly, support the women in your lives.
Opinion
The Pitfalls of Sex Positivity by Cameron Smith
I should start off by saying that I think sex-positivity is a great movement: when it is done right. For those who haven’t heard the term before, it was coined in the 1990’s but has really taken off on social media in the last few years. It’s generally accepted to be “an attitude towards human sexuality that regards all consensual sexual activities as fundamentally healthy and pleasurable, encouraging sexual pleasure and experimentation” as defined by sex educator Allena Gabosch in “A Sex Positive Renaissance”. For our generation, this primarily looks like people (mainly women) sharing information from sex educators to their Instagram stories and social media pages, dropping judgmental attitudes surrounding sex, and talking about sex like the normal part of life it is. Sex-positive people and spaces have become a safe place for others to discuss and ask questions about the weirder parts of sex. There’s the private side to the movement as well, where people feel more liberated about discussing their sexual wants and needs with partners. All of this is hopefully leading to more fulfilling and healthier sexual relationships, along with ideas about sex for many people. But the sex-positivity movement isn’t perfect, far from it in fact. The rise of sex positivity, especially in the progressive circles many Acadia students would be familiar with, has led to two major groups being excluded: those who choose to abstain from sex and those who choose to do sex work. These groups are often still looked down upon by the very people who claim to be sex-positive. There are countless reasons people may choose to remain abstinent: asexuality, past trauma, not feeling ready or prepared for the experience, religious grounds, queer people not feeling represented by the typical ideas of sex, lack of opportunity, or simply deciding they’d rather not. The list goes on and on. Yet, even though all of these are valid choices there is still a rampant culture of shaming people who don’t have sex. Some have even taken to using the term “prude-shaming” for the social stigma experienced. Oddly enough, this concept was best explained in an article published by the dating app Tinder. It’s normal to throw the word “virgin” at someone as an insult, a term which is nothing
more than an outdated idea but can still carry a lot of weight and shame for those it applies to. Despite the fact that there are plenty of people who don’t have sex, they are often made to feel as if there is something abnormal about them. This can do a lot of damage to someone. The effects can feel isolating or even push people into sexual activity before they’re ready, just so they can lose the label of “virgin” that they’ve been made to feel is wrong. On the opposite end of the scale, there are those who choose to do sex work. Sex work can be anything from exchanging sex acts for money, to porn, to selling nudes through social media, and beyond. These services are not only common but often in high demand. Yet despite the high usage of services such as these, even sex-positive people have a tendency to demonize anyone who chooses to make money through sex work. Especially when it comes to women (who let’s face it - will likely always be criticized more than men) people are outraged to see anyone commodifying sex. Many misguided sex-positive and feminist folks make arguments against sex-work. However, you may notice there’s a problem with this logic. Sex positivity means accepting consensual activity between adults, and that has to include activity that looks more like a business transaction. Just as someone may use their cooking skills to sell cakes, sex workers use their sexuality to provide for their customers. Ownership over your own sexuality will look different for everyone. If we want to be truly sex-positive, it’s time to admit this means including the choice not to have sex and the choice to profit from sexuality. Continuing to stigmatize these options is doing nothing but keeping up the “slut or prude” narrative that sex-positivity is trying to erase. Though not everyone’s sexual choices will look the same, there should be no shaming or making fun of anyone for theirs. Sex-positivity includes education, so maybe it’s time we get educated on these choices. If your sex-positivity doesn’t make room for celibacy and sex-work then frankly, I’m not interested.
Female & Sexual Health 3
Menopause
There comes a time in every woman’s life where her ovaries stop the production of eggs and her estrogen and progesterone levels begin to decline. Over a period of time, monthly menstruation becomes less frequent, this period is referred to as perimenopause or the menopausal transition. Once a woman stops menstruating for one full year, it is then referred to as the postmenopausal period when they can no longer get pregnant. Breast Cancer is the most common female cancer worldwide. According to some studies, breast cancer will globally increase to over 2 million new cases per year by the year 2030. Additionally, it is the second most commonly diagnosed cancer in Indian women after cervical cancer. Menopause doesn’t cause cancer, but it increases the risk of getting it as the risk of getting cancer increases with age. Starting menopause after the age of 55 increases the risk of getting breast cancer, ovarian and endometrial cancer in a woman. The major reason for this is because she gets exposed to more estrogen as she doesn’t start menopause till the age of 55. During a menstrual cycle, estrogen stimulates the uterus and breast tissues, hence the more menstrual cycles a woman has, the longer the tissues are exposed to estrogen. The reason why a woman is prone to get ovarian cancer can also be explained by that same age factor. The later she gets her menopause, the more ovulations she has had, which leads to increased risk of developing ovarian cancer. Menopausal transitions generally start occurring between age of 45-55 though some women can experience it sooner, and some later. It usually lasts about 7 years but, in some women, it can last up to 14 years. During this phase, her body’s production of the two major hormones made by the ovaries- estrogen and progesterone, vary greatly. Bones gradually become less dense which leads to women being more vulnerable to fractures. There are more changes that body undergoes during this period, such as fat cells change, body’s energy usage differs and women tend to gain weight more easily. Menopause may also be triggered by a hysterectomy or surgical removal of ovaries that produce hormones. If a woman has surgery for removal of her ovaries or uterus and is not taking supplementary hormones, she would experience the menopause immediately. During this phase of a woman’s life, she is having more than one transition. Apart from the physical and biological ones, women have emotional transitions as well, for example, having to care for aging parents, or adapting for one’s child moving into adulthood, with which comes so many changes. Some women also opt for hormone therapy which, if done at postmenopausal period, increases the risk of breast and ovarian cancer. Small lifestyle changes can make a huge difference in later stage and avoid the risk of chronic illnesses. Inculcating some healthy habits in daily lifestyle such as regular exercises, healthy diets, avoiding any sort of smoking, maintaining a healthy body weight etc. can help in reducing the risk of developing chronic illnesses and help lead a healthier life. by Tanvi Dabas 4 Science
Science
Science Fact of the Week
A new study links Women’s expected longevity to age at birth of her last child. As suggested by The North American Menopause Society (NAMS), no one however is certain on how long they would live for but using leukocyte telomere length offers some insights into a women’s projected lifespan. It further shows how maternal age at last birth of her last child influences the length of the telomere and long-term health. Telomeres are the repeating DNA protein complexes that play the role of protecting the endings of chromosomes and have also proven to be vital for maintaining genomic stability. In past, these Telomeres have been linked to a number of chronic conditions namely cardiovascular disease, type-2 diabetes, a variety of cancers, and a few neurological conditions. The study has found a positive correlation between maternal age at last birth and telomere. In other words, women who had longer telomeres at the last child’s birth, reflects as a biomarker of long-term health and longevity, though this finding is restricted to women with one or two live births or used contraceptives. -Tanvi Dabas
Female & Sexual Health 5
DANCE LIKE NO ONE’S WATCHING Overcoming Dance Culture By Gwenn Firth
There are a few common things that almost every dancer will experience. The first is that achieving the perfect ballet bun means experiencing the most excruciating amount of pain one could possibly imagine and then solidifying your fate under more hairspray than Walmart keeps in stock. The second is the art of the quick change. There is no bigger test of ability than when you have to go from your jazz shoes and half-up hair, to a full bun, tutu and point shoes in under a minute; when your dance career depends on making every second count. The third one is “dance-bag smell.” If you don’t know what I’m talking about, trust me. There is no more distinct smell to a dancer then an Adidas sports bag that is home to those canvas ballet shoes you refuse to replace despite the holes because they are your lucky pair. Not to mention the three pairs of extra tights, leotards, toe spacers, and who knows what else that all comes together to form that smell. There is no question that the life of a dancer comes with distinct characteristics; experiences that draw us all together. Having been a dancer myself since the age of 10, I was drawn in by the creativity, the stage, and for reasons I am unable to explain, even that God awful dance-bag smell. As it is for all athletes, dance often demands that you push your body to the absolute limit. You can always
6 Sports & Wellness
Sports & Wellness
Through IMAGE Movement CREATE AN
jump higher, you can always plié a little lower, and your feet can always point a little harder. There is no question that as a sport, dance demands a lot from you and that pressure can be a lot to live up to, but we keep going back to the studio because we want to step up to the plate. We keep going back because every day we see ourselves getting closer to our goals that previously seemed impossible. Dancers are also unique in that not only are we athletes, but we are artists at the same time. Rather than painting on a canvas, we create an image through movement. Our bodies become the paint brush we use to express the stories and emotions within us on the stage that is our canvas. This balance between the goal-seeking athlete and the passionate artist is what always kept me going back to the studio.
This is when I feel that I must address the elephant in the room. It should be no surprise that the goals we seek to achieve can lead to an enormous amount of pressure. It is no secret among the dance community - albeit the topic is often not addressed directly - that the culture of dance can lead to a pretty significant toll on your mental health. When the narrow standards of dance mean there is more or less one way to be right and a thousand ways to be wrong, developing a dangerously high level of perfectionism becomes a natural symptom. Dancers can be overly critical of others, and twice as critical of themselves. As a girl who was naturally gifted with curves, there was no room for my hips in a culture that celebrates girls whose bodies are small, dainty, and often lacking natural curves. This is something I was reminded of daily; not only by my own thoughts when I looked in the mirror and saw what I know now to be a very distorted image, but by the other girls in my studio. While I tried to make up for this with my drive and my passion for the art, the love I had did not change the natural limitations of my body. I was not the only one who was subject to the criticism of themselves and their peers. I’ll never forget the day that one of the kindest and most hardworking girls in my class had just finished a combo while the rest of us sat down and watched. “Like a deer on ice” one of the other girls scoffed, as the rest of them laughed at one of their own friends under their breaths. It became my everyday norm to walk
into the studio where girls would be observing the other classes and pointing out the problems with other dancers; judging both their abilities and their bodies. In fact, it was so normal that it took me a few years being away from my studio to realize how twisted this daily ritual was. It was an activity that even I regretfully took part in just to try and fit in. When re-telling the stories of my experience as a dancer, this is often when I’m asked the big question. Why did you stay in dance when all of this was happening? I would love to have some deep answer for you here, but the truth is simply that I loved it. While the culture came with considerable weight, the dance itself is what lifted that weight off of my shoulders again and again. The other girls could say what they wanted about me and so could my mind, but I know how I feel every single time I dance, and the feeling is indescribable. The biggest challenge for me was separating the art from the problematic culture that surrounds it; a daunting task, and one I only truly got the hang of during my time at Acadia. Joining the Acadia Dance Collective in my first year was terrifying. Fear of the judgement and criticism came rushing back. However, it did not take me long to realize that this program was different. The girls I was dancing with were all here because they loved to dance. We were all just taking class to have fun. Dance no longer had to be a competition between dancers on who was the best, but a celebration of a common passion we all shared. As I got more involved with the Executive team, and took over as the club President in 2019, these are the core values I seek to promote to each participant in our program, especially as I realize that my experiences are far from isolated. While, sadly, the Acadia Dance Collective has had to cancel our fall program due to COVID-19 restrictions, I hope that with time we will be back in order to allow more students to take part in the shared experience of a safe space to explore our passions once again.
Female & Sexual Health 7
FEATURE
Women and TheiR WOES
ThE PAIN GAP By Katie Winters
Think back to your high school English class: your teacher has assigned the short-story “The Yellow Wallpaper” written by Charlotte Perkins Gilman. Most students either love English or hate it. If you were one of the students that hated English class, chances are you read the SparkNotes on the story and can’t remember a thing about it. If you can’t remember a thing about it or it just seemed like a weird story that didn’t make sense, that really is a shame. Even though the story was published in 1892, the themes still ring true today. The story focused on a woman who suffered from a very real and painful mental illness. Her husband forces her to be isolated within their country mansion and she is forbidden to write or read as a “cure” for her “nervous disorder”. The story is meant to be a critique on the male-dominant medical profession during that time. Although the plot is based on a true story, it is fictitious and also 128 years old. However, the problem of a patriarchal medical industry and the fatal dismissing of women’s mental and physical pain is a very real issue in 2020. According to The Scientista Foundation, The Pain Gap can be described as “the bias against women as it pertains to the treatment of pain”. The concept was born from a study at Maryland University called “The Girl Who Cried 8 Feature
Pain”. The study found that women were often misdiagnosed by healthcare professionals or that their pain was dismissed, and their medical needs were neglected. Anecdotally, I can think of several women I have spoken to that have voiced their frustrations because a doctor did not take their descriptions of their pain or symptoms seriously. Endometriosis is a condition in which tissue grows on the outside of a woman’s uterus, instead of inside. The symptoms of this condition can be excruciatingly painful and may also affect fertility. On average, it takes a woman almost nine (9) years of doctor visits (and often several different doctors) to be properly diagnosed with this debilitating disease (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32007945/). Some argue that The Pain Gap exists because male healthcare professionals; 1) do not have personal experience with women’s diseases, so they fail to properly diagnose it or 2)
“Being in pain and not knowing what’s wrong is scary.”
they have been socially conditioned to believe that women are overexaggerating their pain (especially menstrual pain) and it is likely all in their head. The Pain Gap does not affect all women equally. Black women are greatly affected by racial bias in pain assessment and healthcare. As ridiculous as it may sound, this issue is said to stem from the racist belief that Black folks can endure more pain. Because of eugenics and pseudoscience, there was a belief that there were distinct biological differences among White and Black people (for example, it was once thought to be scientific fact that Black people biologically had thicker skin than White people). These “old” racist beliefs have crossed over into systems that continuously prove to be dangerous to Black women and other women of colour. Black women are three to four times more likely to die from pregnancy complications than a White woman (https://www.thelancet.com/pdfs/journals/lancet/ Photo ©ROSA PINEDA / Wikimedia Commons / CC-BY-SA-3.0 / changes were made
PIIS0140-6736(16)31470-2.pdf ).These deaths are entirely preventable and are byproducts of systemic racism. In a heartbreaking video, an Indigenous woman named Joyce Echaquan can be heard crying in pain from her hospital bed in Quebec. Nurses can be overheard in the background dismissing Joyce’s pain, and uttering extremely offensive and racist things about her. Joyce died in the hospital that day and left behind her husband and seven children. Being in pain and not knowing what’s wrong is scary. It’s even scarier when no one will believe you. Thankfully, it would appear that med schools around the world are working on addressing the issue of The Pain Gap in their training programs. Make sure you listen to the women in your life, validate their pain and experiences, and believe them. It could be a matter of life and death.
Female & Sexual Health 9
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“W AP
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BY KATE ROBART 10 Arts & Culture
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Arts & Culture
The song ‘WAP’
by Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion, has caused a lot of controversy in both the music industry and in social contexts, in the months since its release. The bold lyrics have sparked a lot of constructive conversations surrounding women’s sexuality, women’s health, and the empowerment of women. It’s also led a lot of people to question male rappers’ and singers’ intentions when their lyrics revolve around similar ideas. A quick Google search will show you some of the world’s most vulgar song lyrics regarding women. The majority of these are written and sung by men. Men are still praised for blatantly objectifying and disrespecting women in their lyrics. This ongoing issue is one of the main reasons that people love and hate WAP so much.
The lyrics
of WAP discuss similar topics as these songs written and sung by men. This has led to a large debate regarding whether or not the female singers of WAP should be criticized for their lyrics and debates about the objectification of women and their bodies. People started asking why women should be praised for singing about such vulgar topics when men have sometimes received negative feedback for singing about the same things. Although this question might stem from genuine curiosity and a desire for equality, it neglects to address the fact that women and only women should be able to make decisions about women’s bodies and health.
Critics of the song
have questioned the singers’ sexual health, insinuating that the women might have something medically wrong with their vaginas. However, doctors have confirmed that the conditions the singers discuss are normal and healthy. This goes to show how uninformed both men and women are on women’s bodies and sexual health. Many parents have also felt as though the singers and actresses in the music video for WAP are setting bad examples for young women. The vulgar lyrics make it understandable why an argument could be made for preventing youth from listening to the song. However, the discussion that the song initiates is a valuable one for young women and men all the same. Children don’t always receive adequate sexual education in schools, as seen in some critics’ ignorance regarding vaginas. WAP encourages conversations that are important for young people to have.
Despite all of the criticism
the song has faced, the singers’ desire was to empower women in allowing them to openly talk about their sexuality. This is a whole other issue for women, one that still affects so many people in the 21st century. With very little sex education for women regarding their health, and the taboo nature of talking about women’s pleasure and sexuality, this song creates an opportunity for women to start thinking about these things. The singers are so blunt and lighthearted about the topic that it makes women feel as though they can, and should, do the same. Since the release of the song, many women around the world have begun discussing their sexuality and bodies more openly.
If men cannot listen
to songs like WAP without feeling the need to over sexualize women, then it is their issue, and not the female singers’ fault. Young girls should be educated on their own bodies and sexual health, and encouraged to talk openly about it. So should young boys. Educating boys on how to respect women leads to a more equitable world for women. These conversations at a young age can also help avert rape culture and prevent men from committing acts of sexual violence against women.
The unfair history
of misogyny—the fact that, for so long, women were silenced and considered lesser than men— is something generations of people (both women and men) have tried to change. Now that two women have voiced their opinions and chosen to talk openly about their own bodies, critics desire to silence them once again. Sure, the lyrics are provocative and shocking to some, but they are also important in allowing women to know that they deserve to be heard.
Female & Sexual Health 11
Why? I did it to feel alive the air is heavy and wet a humid paradise. Tendrils of forsythia shudder in the breeze golden leaves and pink petals leech into the sky. There is always a stranger involved otherwise, where’s the high? I did it because I didn’t know what else to do. Promises were whispered in the balmy dusk: Don’t worry - I vow - I’ll do it again for once is never enough. I did it because I was compelled to because nothing else feels real I did it because there’s no one else and no other way to feel.
by Jenna Yorke
12 Creative
Creative
Don’t Curse Me For My Pleasure Sex - the butt of endless jokes. Frat bros snicker / an elbow digs in / hilarious bro Sex - too much and you are a “slut”. Remember to not sleep with the football team. Sex - too little and you are a “prude”. “What do you mean you want to wait until marriage?!” Sex - girls are not allowed to masturbate. And yet as my hand slithers into my underwear, I don’t care.
By Lauren F.
Female & Sexual Health 13
Fingers graze translucent raised skin, while shame buries in my twisting gut. Eyes flicker outwards, a pink ribbon pinned on a bag. The acute scream of a toddler calls out. It brings a memory Hospital gowns, a mother lost. “Shhh, baby. You will never lose yours.� Fingers graze translucent raised skin, shame surrenders to pride and the gut settles.
by Artic Mooley 14 Creative
News
Investing in Women’s Health Research Saves Lives, According to Paula Johnson Women are not getting the full benefit of modern science, technology and medicine. Paula Johnson gives a Ted Talk called “His and Hers… Health Care”. In her presentation, she discusses that women’s health if left almost completely up to chance. It was only just over twenty years ago that there was hardly any data on women’s health other than reproductive organs. Johnson continues, saying that in 1993, the NIH Revitalization Act was implemented, mandating that women, among other minorities, are to be included in medical clinical trials. This was a step forward for the medical industry, because it was learned that there are major differences between men and women’s experiences of several, if not most, diseases. However, these differences that women experienced from men, continued to be overlooked within the health care system. Johnson states that women’s health is being left to chance for two reasons: the first, because the medical industry has so much more to learn, but is not making the investment in women’s health to make it possible, and the second is people are not taking what they have learned and applying it to clinical treatment on women. Therefore, this is not only an issue of integrity or of medicine, it is also an equal rights issue. Johnson says that every cell in the human body is either male or fe-
by: Jenna Bouwman
male, therefore, women and men react differently and may show drastically different symptoms for the same diseases. Paula shares a story about a middle-aged woman named Linda, who has a heart disease and went to see her doctor to get tested due to her symptoms. Her tests showed up negative. It was not until Paula’s team ran an ultrasound that it was realized that women with this particular heart disease show completely different symptoms than men do, and it does not show up on the tests that are designed for men. Had Linda not received a second opinion, she would have suffered much longer with her condition. Paula then discusses a specific example of women’s healthcare taking a backseat to men’s involving lung cancer; a disease that is the leading cancer-causing death in the United States. She says that her investigators discovered that estrogen is the main cause of activation of the lung tumor cells and may be associated with a higher rate of survival amoung young women. This new statistic provides hope for women and even men fighting lung cancer, thanks to funding research for women. Another example Johnson shares, involves the prevalence of depression in women, which she states was the leading cause of disability in the world in 2013. Once again, it was Paula’s team that conducted the re-
search proving that men and women experience drastic differences when exposed to stress, shown on MRI scans. Unfortunately, it is still a prominent issue. Although the medical industry is fully aware of the differences in men and women when it comes to not only depression, but several other diseases, including heart disease (the leading cause of death in women in the united States), 66% of medical tests performed on animals are done on either male or non-identifying gender animals. So, why leave women’s health to chance? The medical industry has the tools to invest in women’s health, and they have the knowledge that women experience diseases in many different ways than men. The medical industry continues to overlook the health of women, regardless of resources and knowledge available. Lastly, Paula states that a new lung cancer drug in 2013 included women in the trial, and the results were astounding; 82% of the tumors that shrunk due to the drug, were in women. This led to the treatment of lung cancer that incorporates the sex of an individual. Finally, people were shown what medicine can accomplish by not only including women in research, but perhaps funding research to improve the treatment of women in the healthcare system.
Investment in research saves lives; studies show that tens of thousands of dollars are invested in breast cancer research, increasing with each death that occurs at the hands of the disease. Overtime, the death rate for women with breast cancer decreases because of the funds that have been dedicated to prolonging treatment and finding a cure. Conversely, little to no funds have been donated or raised for lung cancer, and one can see the impact of the lack of investment in women’s health as, over time, the death rate increases. Why are women being neglected by the medical industry in this way? This is an equal rights issue that is just as important as reproductive rights for women and the issue of the gender wage gap. Paula Johnson urges everyone, especially women themselves, to challenge the issue of the lack of investment in women’s healthcare research by asking their doctors if a particular disease or treatment differs in women. Chances are, the doctor may not know yet, but it is necessary for women to take their healthcare into their own hands, ask important questions and hope the doctor will look for the answer (which is probably, “yes”). Doing this could not only potentially save your own life or your loved one’s life, it could be the first step to enhancing healthcare for females everywhere. Female & Sexual Health 15
Editor’s Note by Rylie Moscato
read this Thank you for taking the time to ons and creative edition. Some of the stories, quotati very from the bra e work in this edition, took immens We are honoured individuals who decided to share. comfortable to tell to be a safe space where people feel e who worked tiretheir stories. Thank you to everyon lessly on this edition. itional In the age of digital media, trad r. My yea y ever newspapers are read less and less print and online team wanted this edition to be both its of a traditional friendly. We want to push the lim t features strong newspaper to create something tha making the newspersonal and creative stories while e to rethink how paper appealing visually. It is tim times change, The newspapers are structured. As the the current times: Athenaeum plans on adapting to Long Live Press!