The newly FDA-approved osteoporosis drug raloxifene may greatly reduce post-menopausal women’s risk for breast cancer, according to several studies of the drug. Doctors and researchers will release extensive data on the drug today at an American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) conference in Los Angeles. In studies originally designed to test the drug’s effects on […]
A survey of more than 10,000 Turkish citizens revealed that “Nearly 25 percent of the Turkish women have been beaten up severely, many of them constantly, by their husbands or other members of their families,” said Istanbul University Professor Necla Arat. Results from the study, conducted by the non-governmental social research group Association to Promote […]
Researchers at Scotland’s Royal Edinburgh Hospital found that the ratio of female to male depression patients is decreasing. In 1980, 1.9 female depression patients were treated for every 1 male patient treated. By 1995, that ratio had dropped to 1.5. The rate of depression for women dropped from 6.1 per 10,000 in 1980 to 5.3 […]
Mr. Martin Griffiths, head of the U.N.’s negotiating team, and Afghanistan’s Acting Minister of Planning, H.E. Maulvi Qari Din Mohammad, recently held a joint press conference in Kabul to discuss their recent 10-day period of negotiations. The two discussed the immunities and privileges of U.N. staff, women’s access to healthcare and education, employment of international […]
According to Beijing’s Southern Weekend newspaper, an average of 474 rural Chinese women commit suicide each day, or over 173,000 each year. Medical doctors reported these findings based on four years of data, gathered from 1990-1994. Approximately 99,266 or 58% of the 173,000 annual victims were young, aged between 15 and 39. Most of the […]
A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) study found that abuse suffered in childhood often reappears as physical or mental illness and bad health habits in adults. Nine thousand people were interviewed about their childhood experiences, their current health, and health habits. Researchers found that people who had experienced four or more types of […]
A study published in the British journal The Lancet reports that the widely-used breast cancer drug tamoxifen, which is currently given to mostly post-menopausal breast cancer patients, could save as many as 20,000 more lives each year if administered to young women. Women who were given tamoxifen for five years after surgery for breast cancer, […]
The University Texas Board of Regents voted unanimously to appeal a previous ruling that banned affirmative action programs at the school. The “Hopwood” ruling was issued by the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals and upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1996. U of Texas officials argued that the ruling places them at a […]
A study conducted by the Women’s Sports Foundation found that girls who participated in sports programs were less likely to have sex, had fewer sexual partners, and were more likely to use contraception when they did have sex than girls who did not participate in sports. The Women’s Sports Foundation drew its findings from data […]
A new Wisconsin state law that bans most surgical abortions and requires women to notify the men who impregnated them went into effect today. The punishment for violation of this law is life in prison. Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin and six doctors who perform abortions filed suit against the state on grounds that the law […]
New York City Mayor Rudolph Guiliani has proposed new legislation that would extend all the city services, benefits, and responsibilities now granted to married residents to registered domestic partners. If passed, New York’s recognition of unmarried couples will be comparable with that of San Francisco and the state of Hawaii. The legislation, sponsored by Democratic […]
After unsuccessful attempts to negotiate with Irmo High School officials, the ACLU has filed a federal lawsuit against the school for violating its students’ constitutional right to protest the school’s cancellation of a scheduled performance by the Indigo Girls, an openly-lesbian duo. At least ten students were suspended and many others received detention after they […]
Ten gang members confessed to raping and beating fifty or more young women in Ciudad Juarez, a Mexican city near the U.S. border. So far, the suspects have denied murdering the women and police say they cannot prove otherwise. Women’s groups report that 118 women have been brutally raped, murdered and left to decay in […]
The season finale of Ellen, the first television program with an openly lesbian main character, will air tonight at 9 p.m. ET on ABC. A “mockumentary” finale, hosted by journalist Linda Ellerbee, features the media’s response to and portrayal of social issues during the past fifty years. Ellen will ponder the significance of many historic […]
A 1996 study of 400 menopausal women found that the drug raloxifene, sold under the brand name Evista, lowered women’s “bad” cholesterol and increased their levels of “good cholesterol.” Raloxifene, though not as effective estrogen in maintaining good cholesterol levels, may be preferable to estrogen and other estrogen-like drugs because it effectively fights the problems […]
In response to protests made by women’s rights, human rights, and labor organizations, Nike has announced a plan to improve working conditions in its Asian factories. Nike will raise the minimum age of its footwear workers from 14 to 18 and will raise the age of other factory workers from 14 to 16. U.S. indoor […]
The Deadbeat Parents Punishment Act recently passed in the House by a vote of 402 to 16 and is expected to become law soon. The Act would mandate felony charges for the following deadbeat parents: parents who owe $10,000 or more in child support; parents who have been behind on child support payments for two […]
Cristina Sanchez became the first woman bullfighter to perform in Madrid’s renowned Las Ventas bullring this week. Two years ago, Sanchez became the first professional woman matador in Europe. An AP articles reported that “fighting in Madrid is a coveted honor reserved for the best.”
An American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists has accused health insurers that pay for Viagra but do not pay for women’s birth control of sex discrimination. According to a USA Today article, many employee-sponsored health care plans cover or are planning to cover the cost of Viagra but deny compensation for non-reversible birth control for […]
Brig. Gen. Darrel Porr testified that he did not try to kiss, make sexual advances toward, stroke, or talk suggestively to his subordinate Kelly Theriot. He also denied retaliating against Theriot for her claims. Theriot has accused Porr of sexual harassment and of conspiring against her, along with several other top-level officers, to strip her […]
