Australian women's perspectives on gendered vulnerability, commercial power, and resistance to the commercialization of menopause.
4 affiliations
- 1Institute for Health Transformation, Faculty of Health, Deakin University, 1 Gerringhap St, Geelong 3320, Australia.
- 2Harvard Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, United States.
- 3Jean Hailes for Women's Health, Melbourne, Australia.
- 4Department of Obstetrics, Gynaecology and Newborn Health, University of Melbourne and the Women's Hospital, Melbourne, Australia.
Abstract
A range of commercial actors actively shape how menopause is understood, experienced, and managed. While existing research highlights concerns about commercial influence, much less is known about how women themselves interpret, negotiate, and respond to these commercialized menopause environments. Using an online qualitative survey, this study explored the opinions of n = 362 Australian cisgender women (45-64 years) about the commercialization of menopause. Data were interpreted using a reflexive approach to thematic analysis, with three themes constructed from the data. (i) 'Commercialization as awareness raising, knowledge and choice'-in which women viewed the growing commercial interest in menopause as a positive development and evidence that women's experiences were being recognized. (ii) 'Profiting from gendered vulnerability'-where women felt that the rapid commercialization of menopause created at least some level of financial or emotional risk. They questioned whether commercial interests were genuinely motivated by concern for women's well-being, or financial gain. (iii) 'Navigating crowded menopause information environments'-in which women stated that the sheer volume of menopause content available online and particularly through social media platforms, often contributed to feelings of confusion, information fatigue, and disengagement. Commercial attention to menopause blurs the boundaries between information and marketing and shifts responsibility for navigating risk onto individuals. A critical approach to menopause must address the commercial systems that shape what women know, what they are encouraged to celebrate or fear, what they are invited to buy, and what forms of care and support are made available to them.
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BibTeX
@article{thomas2026australian,
title = {{Australian women's perspectives on gendered vulnerability, commercial power, and resistance to the commercialization of menopause.}},
author = {Samantha L Thomas and Simone McCarthy and Hannah Pitt and Katrina Wood and Tina D Purnat and Sarah L White and Martha Hickey},
journal = {Health promotion international},
year = {2026},
month = sep,
doi = {10.1093/heapro/daag149},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42905572},
note = {CC BY-NC-ND},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Australian women's perspectives on gendered vulnerability, commercial power, and resistance to the commercialization of menopause.
AU - Samantha L Thomas
AU - Simone McCarthy
AU - Hannah Pitt
AU - Katrina Wood
AU - Tina D Purnat
AU - Sarah L White
AU - Martha Hickey
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/01
JO - Health promotion international
DO - 10.1093/heapro/daag149
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42905572
AB - A range of commercial actors actively shape how menopause is understood, experienced, and managed. While existing research highlights concerns about commercial influence, much less is known about how women themselves interpret, negotiate, and respond to these commercialized menopause environments. Using an online qualitative survey, this study explored the opinions of n = 362 Australian cisgender women (45-64 years) about the commercialization of menopause. Data were interpreted using a reflexive approach to thematic analysis, with three themes constructed from the data. (i) 'Commercialization as awareness raising, knowledge and choice'-in which women viewed the growing commercial interest in menopause as a positive development and evidence that women's experiences were being recognized. (ii) 'Profiting from gendered vulnerability'-where women felt that the rapid commercialization of menopause created at least some level of financial or emotional risk. They questioned whether commercial interests were genuinely motivated by concern for women's well-being, or financial gain. (iii) 'Navigating crowded menopause information environments'-in which women stated that the sheer volume of menopause content available online and particularly through social media platforms, often contributed to feelings of confusion, information fatigue, and disengagement. Commercial attention to menopause blurs the boundaries between information and marketing and shifts responsibility for navigating risk onto individuals. A critical approach to menopause must address the commercial systems that shape what women know, what they are encouraged to celebrate or fear, what they are invited to buy, and what forms of care and support are made available to them.
SN - 0957-4824
SN - 1460-2245
ER -