Saving Women’s Lives Gala

I felt incredibly honoured to have hosted the Saving Women’s Lives Gala, organised by the NUS Global Centre for Asian Women’s Health and Institut Santé des Femmes, Université Paris Cité, on May 11 2024, to raise funds to address the gender disparities gap.

It meant a lot to me as a nutritionist passionate about health, and as a woman.

I grew up hearing that women live longer than men. And that still holds true.

But what shocked me was learning that women spend 25% more of their lives in poorer health. Think conditions like osteoarthritis, atrial fibrillation, endometriosis, and the list goes on…

And these disparities exist largely because of gender gaps in scientific research.

Despite making up nearly half the global population, women remain underrepresented in clinical trials. This leaves significant knowledge gaps in women’s health management and treatment – especially for women of colour and those with disabilities.

I even learnt that lab mice are mostly male??

But there’s hope.

By addressing this gender gap, we can not only save lives but also boost the global economy by $1 trillion annually by 2040*. Another shocker of a stat!

*McKinsey Health Institute and World Economic Forum: Closing the Women’s Health Gap

If you want to make a donation to the cause, you may do so here. The funds will support research and educational initiatives focused on women’s health, with a special emphasis on Asian communities, led by GloWNUS, NUS Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine and Institut Santé des Femmes.

Read more on the event here.