The vaginal microbiome: how to look after it – and what to avoid
Probiotic supplements claimed to ‘support the vaginal flora’ are being promoted online. But is there even a problem to be fixed?
‘Us girls, we have a lot of problems down there and it’s an absolute nightmare,” one influencer says on TikTok, like a seasoned teleshopping host. She reels off a list

https://www.theguardian.com/society/2023/sep/11/the-vaginal-microbiome-how-to-look-after-it-and-what-to-avoid

#WomensHealth #WomensBodies #health #vagina #MicroBiome #ProBiotic #advertising #influencers

When I became a mother, I lost my body – and realized it never belonged to me
The lack of autonomy I felt as a mother reiterated everything society taught me to believe about myself since I was a girl

When my daughter learned to walk, she began following me around our apartment – into the bathroom while I showered, studying my naked body; into the bedroom when I dressed, regarding my baggy underwear with curiosity.

https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2023/sep/11/motherhood-parenting-body-autonomy

#motherhood #WomensBodies #birth #parenting

End the imprisonment of pregnant women.
As a nurse I was so distressed to read about the horrific experience Rianna Cleary suffered and the sad death of her baby. Being locked up with no access to healthcare and support can never be acceptable.
Prison can never be a safe place to be pregnant. In the past three years, two babies have died when their mothers went into labour inside prison.

https://chng.it/x7K9dT5Fsx

#prison #WomensRights #birth
#WomensBodies #pregnancy

#Modi speaks out after video of sexual assault on #women in Manipur emerges

The Indian prime minister, Narendra Modi, has broken his months-long silence on the deadly ethnic conflict raging in the state of Manipur after a video emerged of women being stripped naked, paraded and assaulted before it is alleged they were gang raped.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/jul/20/modi-speaks-out-after-video-of-sexual-assault-on-women-in-manipur-emerges

#WomensRights #rape #WomensBodies #EthnicConflict #India

‘Gut-churning’: anger as Hungarian president addresses major women’s rights conference

Katalin Novák, who is anti-abortion and an important player in the international “anti-gender movement”, was invited to speak at the Women Deliver conference in Kigali this week, where reproductive rights is one of the critical areas under discussion.

https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2023/jul/19/gut-churning-anger-as-hungarian-president-addresses-major-womens-rights-conference

#WomensRights #Women #abortion #WomensBodies

Abortion is healthcare, and it's time to decriminalise it in the UK. Add your name to demand change.

Contrary to popular belief, abortion is still a criminal offence in the UK due to an old Victorian law passed fifty years before women won the right to vote.

https://www.welevelup.org/petition/
(Edited to go to the We Level Up petition archive - look for Abortion is Healthcare petition)
#abortion #WomensRights #WomensBodies #Women

‘Any victim is a liar’: sexual violence scandals in Italy expose deep-seated sexism

Two high-profile cases underscore how sexual harassment and rape are downplayed, as women are disparaged
After it emerged that a 22-year-old woman had denounced his son, La Russa stated that she had taken cocaine before going to Milan’s Apophis club in May.

https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2023/jul/16/any-victim-is-a-liar-sexual-violence-scandals-in-italy-expose-deep-seated-sexism

#rape #WomensRights #WomensBodies #SexualViolence

Everyone should watch this video who wants to understand what is wrong with the present society. Specifically it is a talk by Lundy Bancroft, an expert on abusive and controlling men, but it could also be about an abusive and controlling patriarchy in wider society.
I think it should be an essential part of sex education in secondary schools.

https://youtu.be/YmbrAWDft0s

#men #DomesticAbuse #patriarchy #children #WomensRights #WomensBodies #control

Man gets life sentence for raping girl, nine, forced to leave Ohio for abortion

Gerson Fuentes found guilty in case that dominated headlines when girl had to travel to Indiana for procedure banned in Ohio
The man found guilty of raping and impregnating a nine-year-old Ohio girl who later traveled to Indiana for abortion has been sentenced to life in prison.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/jul/06/nine-year-old-child-rape-victim-abortion-indiana-ohio-life-sentence

#rape #AbortionBan #WomensRights #WomensBodies

Action Aid UK
The Government plans to lock up pregnant women indefinitely if they seek asylum in the UK after arriving by small boat or other so-called ‘irregular’ routes. But together, we can stop this cruelty.

If thousands of us email our MPs now, they could soon vote to stop the government scrapping the existing 72-hour limit on the detention of pregnant asylum seekers. Will you email your MP now?

https://campaign.actionaid.org.uk/page/130776/action/1?utm_source=dotmailer.com&utm_medium=email&utm_content=campaigns_refugee_bill_ACT2306RB5&ea_tracking_id=em2&dm_i=21O5,8BY9P,JMKQ9A,YB2TI,1

#pregnacy #WomensRights #WomensBodies #refugees

3) iNews have also published a feature on pregnancy in prison (£). Written by Lauren Crosby-Medlicott, it features the voices of women who were pregnant in prison, our call for change, and the support of Dr Ranee Thakar, President of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists! You can read the article (behind a paywall) here –

https://inews.co.uk/inews-lifestyle/miscarriage-prison-plight-pregnant-women-behind-bars-2399114?utm_source=brevo&utm_campaign=PIP%20update%20inquest%20close%20%20press&utm_medium=email

which also made it to print!

#pregnacy #prison #WomensRights #WomensBodies

1) The inquest into the death of baby Aisha at HMP Bronzefield has just finished. While it was ongoing, Level Up supporters sent over 700 moving messages of solidarity to her mother. If you wrote a message of support, thank you.

2) ELLE magazine has published an amazing feature on pregnancy in prison. Written by Suyin Hayes, it features the voices of women who were pregnant in prison, as well as our call for change.

https://7aeyc.r.a.d.sendibm1.com/mk/cl/f/LtklHf8pbFYAks5SpoMVOBZDKUSYE86FxL2oT7cP_hghTKqf6ZyJdkFv3Vy51sHLNatw29e7v_20jXshoCnv4VgHK9nQuK8LhTvMssopGEIssImdSsUewGpFiGb2jFWQs1mGT3y0e0tmhjrvrCA4zz1_tb3-8g-WXmdBmtTqHBF7o72gyodX01C1HSgHkRnnDTA0H7oPjgApyExDq0va2uRx3_nPQV-pFaB-YRbw98xhtK6ucTmHoMJ5mJoMs0iDnG-QYtgFGwAT0V3VSn-WazipnDtESPJ0S4WmOer8sOJtSO5faEZV81mM7Eu1_EVXsXPzNn-B4JCTRGsCuqsv1RY3qdhPPc7WR45d6QsfQLzmdTk0rpVEcZ0oIwlUzVpGQL0CqmUhb8xtXxaEWkUlAjW3zKts1b1P2LCm36Z2oPSteRvwiz2zl7paMyc

#pregnacy #prison #WomensRights #WomensBodies

‘All pregnant women are in danger’: protests in Poland after expectant mother dies in hospital
Ombudsman rules that hospital in Nowy Targ failed to tell Dorota Lalik, 33, that her life was in danger and could be saved by an abortion

https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2023/jun/14/all-pregnant-women-are-in-danger-protests-in-poland-after-expectant-mother-dies-in-hospital

#pregnacy #abortion #WomensRights #WomensBodies

Outrage at jail sentence for woman who took abortion pills later than UK limit

Mitigation plea signed by medical groups was sent to judge, while BPAS chief executive said sentence was ‘shocking and appalling’

Campaigners and MPs have reacted with outrage to a woman being sentenced to more than two years in prison for procuring drugs to induce an abortion after the legal limit.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/jun/12/woman-in-uk-jailed-for-28-months-over-taking-abortion-pills-after-legal-time-limit

#abortion #WomensRights #WomensBodies

Stop praising women’s strength. We need a world where we don’t have to fight to be valued
Romanticising survival distracts from the need for radical change. Strength alone can’t overcome pay gaps, gendered harassment or protect victims of violence

https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2023/may/03/stop-praising-womens-strength-we-need-a-world-where-we-dont-have-to-fight-to-be-valued

#WomensRights #women #WomensHealth #WomensBodies

Make Menopause Matter in Healthcare, Employment and Education. #MakeMenopauseMatter

https://chng.it/CgyYsBBb88

#WomensRights #WomensHealth #WomensBodies #women #menopause

This is what happens when fascism takes over health care.

“You Know What? I’m Not Doing This Anymore.”
There’s a quiet new crisis brewing in Texas following the abortion ban. It could get much worse.

https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2023/03/texas-abortion-law-doctors-nurses-care-supreme-court.html

#abortion #Texas #WomensRights #WomensHealth #WomensBodies

Tories abandon bid to stop Black mums dying in childbirth despite shocking figures

The Maternity Disparities Taskforce was supposed to meet every two months to lead efforts on reducing the number of deaths among women from ethic minority communities and poorer areas, but it has not met since last July

https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/politics/tories-abandon-bid-stop-black-29725024?utm_source=twitter.com&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=sharebar

#WomensHealth #race #WomensRights #WomensBodies

Idaho governor signs 'abortion trafficking' bill into law, 1st of its kind
The new law is the first of its kind in the United States.

https://abcnews.go.com/US/idaho-governor-signs-abortion-trafficking-bill-law/story?id=98399580

#abortionrights #WomensRights #womenshealth #WomensBodies
#UnitedStates #Idaho #HandmaidsTale

Poland: Activist Defending Safe Abortion Risks Jail

https://www.amnesty.org.uk/urgent-actions/activist-defending-safe-abortion-risks-jail

#womensrights #womenshealth #womensbodies #abortionrights #Poland