Photo: Victoria Song/Gizmodo
Apple added period-tracking to the iOS Health app and launched a clinical study into women’s health back in 2019. Now, the Apple Women’s Health Study team has some preliminary data that affirms that, yes, there is an incredible variety of period symptoms suffered by menstruating people worldwide.
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The findings were from the first 10,000 participants who enrolled in the study using the iPhone Research app and provided demographic data. Of that number, 6,141 participants recorded period symptoms and the most commonly tracked were abdominal cramps (83%), bloating (63%), and tiredness (61%). Or, basically, things anyone who’s ever had a period could tell doctors if they just asked. About half the participants also reported acne, headaches, mood swings, appetite changes, lower back pain, and breast tenderness. Some rarer symptoms included diarrhea, sleep changes, constipation, nausea, hot flashes, and ovulation pain.
Apple, Harvard release early data from women s health study to help destigmatize menstruation
The study aims to advance the science around women s health. Listen - 01:39 Apple
Apple and Harvard on Tuesday released a preliminary study update on the Apple Women s Health Study, offering insights on women and their menstrual symptoms. The study could help advance the science around women s health and help destigmatize menstruation, according to researchers at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. The preliminary data we are sharing today suggests women across the country have a shared experience of a wide range of menstrual symptoms, and that this natural monthly occurrence is something we should be having more discussions about, said Dr. Shruthi Mahalingaiah, one of the study s principal investigators, in a release.
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It’s no secret that periods often come with a whole variety of other symptoms, but data around menstruation is lacking. Apple and Harvard’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health are looking to change that by collaborating on the Apple Women’s Health Study, which is aimed at understanding more about periods in women across demographics and lifestyles.
This morning the organizations released a preliminary data analysis from the study, which was first announced in 2019, and included 10,000 participants. As part of the study participants were able to log period characteristics through surveys or the cycle-tracking feature on their iPhone or Apple Watch. The study also used sensor data from the devices. A total of 6,141 women tracked at least one menstrual symptom,
in iOS edited March 9 Apple and the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health has released initial findings from its Women s Health Study, revealing some of the data points determined by the examination of women s menstrual cycles recorded in the iOS Research app.
Originally launched in November 2019, the Apple Women s Health study aims to advance the understanding of menstrual cycles and its relationship with various health conditions. Medical research on menstruation was previously limited to smaller studies instead of a broader population, which the study team aimed to fix.
The first update, released on Tuesday, uses data from 10,000 participants across the United States and a range of ages and races, collected via the Research app. Apple says the data highlights how large-scale, longitudinal research on menstruation can help advance the science round women s health and destigmatize menstruation.