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Research Outline

Prepared for Kimberly H. | Delivered October 2, 2019

Hormone Cycle Awareness

Goals

Provide information on what women know about hormone cycle, including knowledge of the four cycles, misconceptions, and other common knowledge, as well as providing information on what women are told when they get their period about their hormone cycle, and whether the focus on hormonal health has grown in recent years


Early Findings


 Hormonal awareness for women has grown as the shift around perceptions of hormones has moved from the historic idea that women’s hormone fluctuations made them less capable, to the idea that awareness of hormonal change offered a personal tool for empowerment.

 One expert notes that hormones are being used as significant tools for women to discover the hidden intelligence of their bodies.

However, there are still frequent misconceptions of the role of hormones, with one business survey finding 54% of respondents believed a woman’s behavior at work was related to her hormones.

 Hormone tracking apps have grown in popularity, which have allowed women to better understand their cycles, and use hormone tracking to plan and prevent pregnancy. For example, period tracking app clue allows millions of women to better understand their hormone cycles.

 One researcher found that when she asked women about what they knew related to hormones, there was still a lot of confusion, especially related to PMS symptoms, and quite a few predominant myths, assumptions, and misinformation.

The conversation around hormones is seen as emerging by marketing and consumer companies who are tapping into a growing interest in personal wellness.

One survey noted 30% of American women were confused about their first period, and 48% had not had a conversation around what to expect beforehand.

However, this tended to shift by age, with 82% of older millennials noting they were comfortable sharing and discussing their period and hormones.

 42% of women surveyed in the US had however experience period shaming.

While there is not specific data related to percent of women who know about the 4 cycles, brands involved in hormone awareness are helping women to decode the role of hormones in their well being.

For example, Moody Month app allows users to create a customized hormone profile, and receive recommendations of how this might impact nutritional needs and well-being.