The importance of individualised female athlete support
The hormonal cycle is part of the daily life of each woman. It influences her physical, mental, and emotional well-being. Every girl, growing up, has to develop her very own body wisdom, learn how she feels and reacts during different phases of her cycle, and how to best deal with mood swings and those days where she does not feel at the top of her game.
The menstrual cycle is as old as mankind, but modern health research has for long ignored its influence. And so has sports science. Researchers have been deterred by the “complicated” menstrual cycle and how women in different phases of their menstrual cycle may influence study results.
More and more research emerges demonstrating how much men and women differ in their genetic setup and how this is reflected in every cell of their bodies. We can no longer assume that no differences in physiology and metabolism exist between men and women and only include the former in studies for reasons of convenience.
Furthermore, individual women are very different, too. They are affected by hormone fluctuations during their menstrual cycle in different ways. It turns out people’s tissues react differently to hormones.
The English Institute of Sport has embraced this complexity. They partnered with Mint Diagnostics in a project that aims to provide truly tailored services to individual female athletes based on their unique hormone profile.
Date: Wednesday, July 14, 2021
Time: 17H00 GMT
Located: Online – A Login link will be provided to you prior to the event
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At this live event, we will learn about the innovative technology that resulted from this partnership from the scientist who leads the project. Hormonix was developed to enable the frequent analysis of female hormones, and this non-invasively by using saliva rather than having to draw blood. The results are returned quickly and allow the athlete and their support staff to act on them without delay.
About Dr. Richard Burden
Dr. Richard Burden is the Co-Lead of Female Athlete Health & Performance at the English Institute of Sport, where he provides leadership in the science, medicine and technology support to elite athletes. As an applied physiologist, Richard has worked with some of the country’s leading athletes for more than 15 years. Alongside his work at the EIS, Richard is a Senior Lecturer at St Mary’s University, a visiting fellow at Loughborough University, a Senior Consultant Editor for Experimental Physiology, and a consultant in sport technology.
