Whose Bodies Are Counted?
When wearables ignore the female body, health outcomes suffer
The Problem with Defaults
Most wearables assume a 24-hour male hormonal rhythm. But women follow infradian cycles—monthly changes that dramatically affect mood, energy, and recovery.
Do Wearables Support Women's Health Needs?
Comparison table on 10 wearable products
|
Devices |
Menstrual Cycle |
Pregnancy |
Menopause |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Apple Watch |
✅ |
❌ |
❌ |
|
Fitbit Sense |
✅ |
❌ |
❌ |
|
Oura Ring |
✅ |
✅ |
❌ |
|
Garmin Venu |
✅ |
❌ |
❌ |
|
Samsung Galaxy |
✅ |
❌ |
❌ |
|
Whoop |
❌ |
❌ |
❌ |
|
Withings ScanWatch |
❌ |
❌ |
❌ |
|
Huawei Watch GT |
✅ |
❌ |
❌ |
|
Polar Ignite |
❌ |
❌ |
❌ |
|
Ava Fertility |
✅ |
✅ |
❌ |
|
TOTAL Count |
7 |
2 |
0 |
“My ring said I was well-rested. But I had cramps, brain fog, and zero focus.”
— Maria, 29, PCOS patient
62% of female users feel their devices misrepresent their health during key cycle phases.
Algorithms trained on male bodies lead to false positives—and lost trust.
Link to the source: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41746-024-01394-0?utm_source=chatgpt.com
Fragmented Solutions
Clue tracks periods.
Natural Cycles predicts fertility.
Oura tracks sleep.
But they don’t talk to each other. Women do the work of connecting the dots.
What Inclusive Design Looks Like
Solving this isn’t about adding a “pink tab.” It’s about rethinking default bodies in data sets.
Inclusive FemTech needs:
- Hormone-aware algorithms
- UX research with diverse users
- APIs that share across tools
When tech ignores women’s bodies, it doesn’t just miss features—it misses futures.
Thank you.
Share your experience with me on LinkedIn :)
Created by Alina Mao.
Instructed by Geoff McGhee.
May 2025.
