Women's Health (Audio)

Fertility health affects conception and reproductive planning in important ways. Jennifer Ashby, DAOM, and Maren Shapiro, MD, explain how East Asian medicine principles and daily habits shape fertility optimization. Ashby examines Jing, Blood, Qi, Yin/Yang balance, and stress, while Shapiro examines sleep, nutrition, exercise, supplements, timing intercourse, and when to seek additional support, h...

Adolescent health affects the well-being of teen girls in important ways. Dr. Jenifer Matthews and Dr. David Becker explain how hormonal change and emerging technology shape physical and mental health. Matthews examines acne, PMS, and menstrual cycle irregularities, and offers integrative approaches to supporting teen hormonal balance, including key nutritional strategies and simple, safe herbal m...

Menopause can affect sexual health in ways that are common, frustrating, and often overlooked. Kathryn Macaulay, M.D., Director, UC San Diego Menopause Health Program, explains how hormonal changes during perimenopause and menopause contribute to vaginal dryness, pain with intercourse, and low libido. Macaulay also outlines why these symptoms can have more than one cause, including physical change...

Menopause symptoms can affect sleep, mood, and everyday quality of life in ways that are easy to dismiss but hard to ignore. Kathryn Macaulay, M.D., Director, UC San Diego Menopause Health Program, explains what menopause is, when hormone therapy is considered, and why treatment decisions depend on symptoms, health history, and individual risk. Macaulay also addresses hot flashes, night sweats, os...

Perimenopause can bring physical and emotional changes that leave many women feeling unsettled. Kathryn Macaulay, M.D., Director, UC San Diego Menopause Health Program, explains how hormonal shifts and changing menstrual cycles shape this stage of life. Macaulay examines symptoms such as irregular periods, hot flashes, and mood changes, along with broader concerns including weight, overall health,...

The postpartum period is a major transition that reshapes the body, emotions, and daily life all at once. Julia Cormano, MD, FACOG presents a clear overview of recovery after delivery, explaining common physical changes, expected discomforts, and practical ways to support healing. Cormano emphasizes that experiences vary, and that understanding what is typical can reduce stress and help families f...

Ina Stelzer, Ph. D., explores how the maternal immune system adapts to support a healthy pregnancy and how disruptions can lead to complications like preterm birth. Her lab identifies early immune changes linked to spontaneous preterm birth and investigates the role of the maternal brain in regulating immune responses. Stelzer uses advanced technologies like mass cytometry and spatial proteomics t...

Amanda Lewis, Ph. D. investigates how glycan-degrading enzymes contribute to bacterial vaginosis (BV), a common condition linked to infertility, preterm birth, pelvic inflammatory disease, and increased cancer risk. Her research shows that BV-associated bacteria strip protective sugar coatings—glycans—from vaginal epithelial cells, disrupting normal function and increasing vulnerability to infecti...

Rebecca Rakow Penner, M.D., Ph. D., is a body and breast imaging radiologist and MRI physicist advancing how pelvic pain and gynecologic cancers are diagnosed through imaging. She highlights how MRI is improving the detection of endometriosis, pelvic adhesions, venous disorders, and pelvic floor dysfunction with enhanced resolution and motion-sensitive techniques. Rakow Penner also works on new MR...

Sarah Banks, Ph. D. explores why Alzheimer's disease affects women differently than men, emphasizing distinct patterns in tau pathology, cognitive testing bias, and treatment response. She explains how women tend to show a rapid buildup of tau during early cognitive decline, which may contribute to their higher prevalence of Alzheimer's. Banks also highlights how common diagnostic tools may overlo...

Marni Jacobs, Ph. D., M.P.H., presents the MOM Health Study, part of the NIH's Multi-Omics for Health and Disease (MOHD) Consortium, which investigates hypertensive disorders of pregnancy—such as preeclampsia—and their impact on postpartum health. The study aims to uncover the biological mechanisms linking these conditions to long-term maternal outcomes like stroke and heart disease. Unlike other...

Louise Laurent, M.D., Ph. D., presents new insights into placental biology using cutting-edge molecular and imaging technologies. As part of the NIH-funded Human Biomolecular Atlas Program, her research focuses on mapping the structure and function of the placenta across gestation. By combining bulk RNA sequencing, single-cell analysis, spatial transcriptomics, and imaging mass cytometry, Laurent...

Lars Bode, Ph. D., presents the Human Milk Institute at UC San Diego, the world’s first research center dedicated entirely to human milk. Established in 2022, the institute connects molecular research with clinical practice, community outreach, and public health. It unites multiple programs under one umbrella, including a milk bank for preterm infants, a biorepository, lactation education, and a r...

Anthony Molina, Ph. D. highlights research and resources from the Stein Institute for Research on Aging that support healthy aging, with a focus on women’s health. He describes the institute’s work in training scientists, conducting clinical trials, and promoting community engagement. Key resources include a geroscience lab for biomarker discovery, new facilities for exposome and epigenetics resea...

Jennifer Anger, M.D., M.P.H., Ph. D. investigates interstitial cystitis (IC), also known as painful bladder syndrome, with a focus on improving care through research on sex, gender, and health disparities. Using Veterans Affairs (VA) data, Anger challenges the outdated belief that IC predominantly affects women. She explores how comorbidities such as PTSD and depression, common among veterans, inf...

Gladys (Sandy) Ramos, M.D. outlines the comprehensive maternal care services at UC San Diego, emphasizing clinical excellence, innovation, and community impact. She highlights programs in diabetes and pregnancy, high-risk obstetrics, postpartum and HIV care, and maternal mental health. Ramos describes cutting-edge capabilities in fetal and placental imaging, including expertise in placenta accreta...

Sheng Zhong, Ph. D. pioneers technologies that advance women’s reproductive health. Zhong develops a minimally invasive method to analyze extracellular RNA secreted by embryos during IVF. By sequencing tiny samples of spent culture media, they generate comprehensive RNA profiles and use machine learning to identify biomarkers that predict embryo quality with accuracy comparable to traditional imag...

Andrea Z. LaCroix, Ph. D. presents major public health trends affecting women across the lifespan, from rising maternal mortality and chronic disease risks linked to pregnancy complications to the ongoing need for improved menopause care. She highlights innovative research, including digital tools for menopause education, studies on cancer survivorship, and efforts to predict healthy aging using e...

Linda Brubaker, M.D. emphasizes the urgent need to advance women’s health research beyond its traditional focus on reproduction, pregnancy, menopause, and breast cancer. She highlights the biological, social, and lifestyle factors that affect women across the lifespan and calls for greater inclusion of women in clinical research. Brubaker announces her leadership of a new JAMA initiative to centra...

Antoni J. Duleba, M.D. outlines the broad scope of reproductive endocrinology and infertility, emphasizing care across a woman’s lifespan—from adolescence through menopause. He explains common endocrine conditions like polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), endometriosis, and menstrual disorders, all of which can affect fertility and overall health. Duleba highlights advances in fertility preservation,...

Gretchen Bandoli, Ph. D., highlights four major research initiatives within her division focused on maternal and child health. The Center for Better Beginnings studies medication and vaccine safety during pregnancy and lactation through ongoing cohort studies. The Mommy’s Milk Human Milk Research Biorepository collects breast milk samples to investigate postnatal exposures. The SOMI study links me...

Emily Lukacz, M.D., M.A.S. presents research from two national networks focused on female pelvic floor disorders. One project studies bladder health in over 3,000 women to identify factors that support wellness rather than disease. Another conducts large-scale clinical trials, including a randomized study comparing two minimally invasive treatments for stress urinary incontinence. Additional trial...

Experts discuss recent advances in how maternal health and immune function during pregnancy affect infant development and long-term outcomes. Research focuses on immune adaptations, complications like preterm birth, and neuroimmune pathways, using techniques such as mass cytometry, spatial proteomics, and chemogenetics to identify biomarkers and mechanisms that guide prevention and treatment strat...

Explore key aspects of aging and menopause, focusing on women’s health and how biological changes impact overall well-being. Experts discuss current research on healthy aging, including the role of physical activity, brain health, and hormone changes during menopause. They highlight how sex differences affect diseases like Alzheimer’s and emphasize the importance of personalized approaches to trea...

Menstruation is the cyclical shedding of the endometrium triggered by falling progesterone levels. Menstruation is a rare trait found in less than 2% of mammals and likely evolved independently at least 4 times. Why do some mammals menstruate while most do not? The leading hypothesis is that menstruation occurs as a nonadaptive consequence of spontaneous decidualization of the endometrium, which e...