“This is a natural progression of meeting the female patient consumer in a way where we’re addressing a very big need,” Dr. Jessica Shepherd, the chief medical officer at Hers, told Newsweek in an interview ahead of the September 15 launch.
“A hundred percent of women will go through menopause,” Shepherd said. “How do we allow women to feel better about themselves, medically from a symptom perspective? While also meeting [the needs of] women who generally experience an emotional aspect to perimenopause and menopause?”
Hers is the latest brand to jump into the menopause market. The platform joins healthcare startups like Bonafide Health, Midi Health, Alloy Health and Oura in what is becoming an increasingly competitive landscape.
Fitness companies have also waded into the waters. Last week, Peloton announced it had partnered with Respin Health, the holistic menopause platform founded by Halle Berry, to launch one of the first large-scale studies on how exercise can improve symptoms. And last month, Club Pilates and Pure Barre announced they were teaming up with Midi to bring live workshops on menopause management to select studios.
According to an August report from Research and Markets, the U.S. menopause market is projected to grow from $5.56 billion in 2024 to $8.58 billion by 2033. That growth is largely driven by several factors: access to telehealth platforms, an aging population and public awareness.
It’s estimated that approximately 1.3 million women experience menopause in the U.S. each year. And yet data from Boston Consulting Group found that only one in four women treat their menopause-related symptoms.
The conversation around perimenopause, the transitional period leading up to menopause, has also exploded in recent years. Searches for advice on perimenopause increased by 106 percent over the last five years. That outpaces the number of menopause-related searches by fourfold, according to a March study by supplement brand Valerie.
“Menopause has become a topic not only in the business sector, with product development, celebrities voicing their journey and what has really helped them, but also [is a topic] being highlighted in the medical space,” Shepherd said.
Photo-illustration by Newsweek/Canva/Courtesy of Hers
Menopause historically has been under-researched. Patients have long faced stigma and shame around this transition, and without much understanding, providers have lacked the tools to treat them.
During Newsweek‘s inaugural Women’s Global Impact forum, Shepherd shared a personal anecdote to demonstrate how those uncomfortable feelings around menopause continue to limit care. On the stage at Newsweek‘s New York City headquarters, Shepherd recalled how even her own sister hesitated to talk to her about the menopause symptoms she suffered through for years.
Reflecting on her remarks in September, Shepherd told Newsweek, “Her not being able to come to me really hit home, because I was like, ‘How could she not come to me?'”
“Imagine all the women in the community who are not my sister, who have these things going on, and the hesitation [they experience in] going to their healthcare provider to say, ‘I really need help,'” she said. “That, to me, spoke volumes.”
With Wednesday’s launch, Shepherd said Hers is “narrowing that gap between women being okay in talking about what they’re going through and providers now having treatment and therapies that are going to help them as they go through it.”
When patients seeking menopause treatment visit the Hers platform, they’re asked to fill out a thorough intake form that gathers health history and personal preferences to create unique med kits that help alleviate symptoms like hot flashes, night sweats, poor sleep and vaginal discomfort or dryness. Treatment can include estradiol, which comes in a patch or a pill, as well as progesterone.
Hers
Beyond the hormone therapies it offers, like estradiol and progesterone, Hers also provides access to experts in psychology, nutrition, exercise and sleep, who can “set up the patient for success,” Shepherd said. Patients can access their care around the clock through the Hers app, which enables them to ask questions or modify their treatment plans at any time.
“[Menopause] can be a 10- to 15-year transition,” she said. “This is a good amount of time where women should feel like they are taking control of their health, that they’re making the best decisions for themselves, but that they’re also integrated with a system that makes it approachable and empowers them.”
Shepherd added, “We will all go through perimenopause and menopausal changes, and they can be startling, they can be disruptive, they can be embarrassing, but it can also inspire women to redirect the course, reinvent themselves, in this new phase of life. We’re really encouraging women to take charge and care of their health, so it doesn’t feel overcomplicated or out of reach.”
