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Why the Five and One?
Health care doesn't fail women because we lack information. It fails because systems are slow to change, and they're rarely built around women's bodies, lives, or timelines. The Five & One exists to make those systems visible.
Every other week, we share five signals shaping women's health, plus one thing just for you.
This week
This week, we're looking at where the system is still playing catch-up. A record investment in women's health, and why it's still not enough. New ways to diagnose endometriosis faster. The research catching up on testosterone for women. Why women report more fatigue than men. And what magnesium can, and can't, do.
Free, forever. If you want more than the newsletter, there's an invitation waiting for you further down.
01. $2.5 Billion for Women's Health. Still Not Enough.
The Gates Foundation just made its biggest-ever bet on women's health, and even they say it's not enough. The Foundation is promising $2.5 billion for women's health research by 2030. That's a huge amount of money for problems that have been ignored for too long. But the Foundation itself calls it "a drop in the bucket" compared to what's actually needed.
The Breakdown
Women's health research has been underfunded for decades, and most of what funding there is has focused narrowly on the reproductive years. That leaves huge gaps in what we know about women's health at every other stage of life.
This new money follows a similar pattern. It focuses on five areas: pregnancy and childbirth care, maternal health and nutrition, reproductive and period health, birth control research, and sexually transmitted infections.
Those areas matter a lot. But heart disease, autoimmune disease, and brain health, conditions that often affect women differently than men, aren't on the list.
One foundation can't fix all of this alone. The size of what's still missing shows why governments, other foundations, and companies need to invest more too.
The Breakthrough
Still, $2.5 billion can do a lot of good. It will fund more than 40 new projects in areas that have been overlooked for years. That includes new treatments for dangerous pregnancy complications and heavy periods. It also includes better ways to diagnose problems, and birth control that doesn't rely on hormones. The Foundation hopes this money inspires others to invest too: more governments, more investors, more companies. That next wave of funding needs to do two things. Bring in more money. And cover more of women's lives. The real goal is research that looks at a woman's whole life, not just her reproductive years, but everything before, during, and after them too.
Source: PBS
02. A Test Can Find Endometriosis. But First We Have to Believe the Pain.
New tests outside the US could help diagnose endometriosis without surgery, and without the usual decade-long wait. Millions of women have this painful condition, and getting an answer can take years of doctor visits and confusing symptoms. Too many women are simply told that severe period pain is something they have to live with. This is a reminder that research alone isn't enough. We also need funding for education and advocacy, so tools like this actually reach women here at home.
The Breakdown
Endometriosis affects about 1 in 10 women worldwide. Even so, it can take 10 years or more after symptoms start to get a real diagnosis.
Symptoms like pelvic pain, painful periods, pain during sex, fatigue, bloating, and trouble getting pregnant can look like other conditions. That overlap makes diagnosis hard.
Both patients and doctors sometimes treat severe period pain as normal. And not every doctor is trained to spot endometriosis.
Imaging like ultrasounds can sometimes catch signs of the disease. But surgery has long been the main way to confirm it for sure.
The Breakthrough
New tests could give doctors easier ways to find endometriosis, without surgery. One uses sensors on the belly to track electrical signals in the gut. Another checks a saliva sample for tiny molecules that can signal the disease. The UK is considering using both inside its public health system, the NHS. It wants more evidence first. The goal is finding the disease faster during regular doctor visits. Neither test is approved by the FDA in the US yet. Experts say these tests won't replace imaging or a full medical exam, but they could add one more useful tool. And no test alone can fix the other half of the problem: women need to be believed when they say something hurts.
Source: AP News
03. Women Are Using Testosterone. The System Is Catching Up.
Regulators are finally giving testosterone in women its own research, instead of borrowing answers from studies on men. Testosterone is showing up more in conversations about menopause, especially for women with low sex drive. But there's still no FDA-approved testosterone product made just for women in the US. As more women get prescriptions, regulators are taking a closer look. They want to know more about its benefits, its safe doses, and its long-term risks.
The Breakdown
Testosterone hasn't been studied nearly as much in women's health as estrogen and progesterone have.
There's no FDA-approved product for women. So doctors usually turn to men's products, or a version mixed by a pharmacy. Either way, getting a safe, steady dose is harder.
There's solid evidence testosterone helps some women past menopause who've lost interest in sex. But claims that it also boosts mood, memory, energy, muscle, or bone health aren't well proven yet.
We still don't know much about the long-term safety, including effects on the heart and breast health.
The Breakthrough
The FDA looking into this is a real signal. Testosterone in women needs its own research, not evidence borrowed from studies on men. Better research could show who actually benefits. It could also show the right dose, and the long-term risks. Products made just for women could also make dosing far more reliable. More evidence would help women separate what testosterone is proven to do from what's just hype. Women deserve treatments that are studied, dosed, and designed for their bodies, not borrowed from someone else's.
Source: U.S. News
04. Tired of Being Tired
New CDC data confirm what a lot of women already feel: we're more exhausted than men, and nobody's sure why yet. Feeling exhausted has become so common that it's easy to shrug off as just part of modern life. But this data shows fatigue isn't equal. Women are much more likely than men to say they feel tired most days, or every day. It raises an important question: how much of women's exhaustion have we just learned to accept as normal?
The Breakdown
About 1 in 5 women (20%) report frequent fatigue, compared to about 1 in 8 men (13%).
Fatigue isn't just feeling sleepy. It's physical or mental exhaustion that doesn't go away with more sleep or rest.
It can be a sign of many things: low iron, autoimmune disease, depression, sleep disorders, hormone changes, or chronic illness.
Frequent fatigue can get in the way of work, relationships, and everyday life, but because being tired is so normal, especially for women, it's easy to overlook as a sign something's wrong
The Breakthrough
Data like this helps prove that ongoing fatigue is a real health issue, not just a lifestyle complaint. Fatigue is usually a symptom, not a diagnosis on its own. That makes it worth asking what else might be going on. Now we can see the gap between women and men. That gives researchers a clear reason to study why, instead of just accepting it. Better conversations about fatigue could help catch underlying conditions earlier. If it doesn't ease up after a few weeks of good sleep, it's worth mentioning to your doctor on its own, not just as an afterthought. Sometimes "I'm exhausted" shouldn't be the end of the conversation. It should be the start of one.
Source: NBC News
05. The Mineral Having a Moment
Magnesium really does matter for your health. It's just not the cure-all the wellness world makes it out to be. If you're one of the many women dealing with fatigue, you've probably heard magnesium suggested as a fix. It's become a wellness-world favorite, praised for everything from better sleep to more energy to less stress. So it's worth separating what we actually know it does from what the hype promises.
The Breakdown
Magnesium helps run hundreds of processes in the body, including muscle and nerve function, blood sugar control, and bone health.
Women need about 310 to 320 mg a day, and more during pregnancy.
It's found naturally in foods like leafy greens, nuts, seeds, beans, and whole grains, but many people don't get enough regularly.
Supplement claims often go beyond what evidence supports, especially around sleep and anxiety, and different forms have different uses and side effects, which makes the supplement aisle more confusing than it looks.
The Breakthrough
Food is usually the best place to start. Magnesium-rich foods come with plenty of other nutrients too. Supplements can help when you're not getting enough from food, or for specific health needs, but more isn't automatically better. Some forms work better for certain purposes, while others are more likely to upset your stomach. Being deficient in magnesium and just not getting quite enough aren't the same thing. Testing, and a conversation with your doctor, can help if you're concerned. Like a lot of wellness trends, the goal is figuring out what your body actually needs, separate from everything the internet promises it will do.
Source: Women’s Health Magazine
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Your+1: Let's Talk About Sex
September is Sexual Health Awareness Month, and sexual health is health. Desire, pleasure, pain, intimacy, STIs, birth control, vaginal and pelvic health, and the changes that come with pregnancy, postpartum, and menopause are all legitimate parts of our wellbeing.
And yet, sex is still one of those topics many women were taught to talk around instead of talk about. That silence makes it harder to know what's normal, ask questions, get care, or understand how our bodies change over time.
So here's your reminder: there are no embarrassing questions about your health. Talk to your doctor. Talk to your partner. Talk to your friends. Get curious about your own body. The more comfortable we get talking about sexual health, the better we can advocate for it.
(Psst, 51& members: one of our partner discounts is from Dame.)
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P.S. This issue is basically three things women have always done finally getting a research budget. Testosterone. Magnesium. Admitting we're tired. Next up, we expect a study confirming that yes, we do in fact need a nap. If you made it all the way down here, congrats. You're the kind of person who reads the fine print and asks the follow-up question. You probably already take your magnesium with food, like you're supposed to. We see you.