Tuesday 28 June 2022 11:12 AM Now the NHS quietly removes the word 'women' from its MENOPAUSE page trends now
The NHS has ditched the terms 'women' and 'woman' from its menopause guidance, despite ministers promising to crackdown on woke gender-free language in medical advice.
Last month, MailOnline revealed how NHS England had quietly scrubbed all mention of women from its landing pages for ovarian, womb and cervical cancer.
The move was condemned by Health Secretary Sajid Javid, who said 'common sense and the right language' should be used to 'give people the best possible care'.
Now MailOnline has found 'women' and 'woman' have also been omitted from official advice about the menopause, which is unique to biological females.
In its online overview about the menopause, NHS advice used to contain six gender-specific mentions. But it was updated on May 17 to remove the terms.
Experts have warned de-gendering medical advice could be dangerous for women by over-complicating vital health messaging.
NHS Digital, which manages health information webpages, told MailOnline it wanted to ensure language was 'inclusive'.
A spokesperson added: 'The NHS website provides information for everyone. We keep the pages under continual review to ensure they use language that is inclusive, respectful and relevant to the people reading it.'
The NHS has quietly omitted the terms 'women' and 'woman' from its webpage on menopause. Pictured here is the older version of the menopause overview page (May 16) which mentioned women six times
But the new version omits women from the overview entirely. Experts have warned women could be disadvantaged by de-gendered medical advice confusing health messaging
The menopause describes changes that occur when a woman stops having periods and is no longer able to get pregnant naturally.
Hormonal changes that happen during the menopause can cause a wide range of debilitating symptoms, including depression, brain fog and hot flushes.
Rising awareness about the condition means an increasing number of women are coming forward for advice or medication.
The NHS webpage on menopause used to describe the condition as 'when a woman stops having periods and is no longer able to get pregnant naturally'.
But the new, gender-neutral description says: 'Menopause is when your periods stop due to lower hormone levels'.
The old advice also highlighted that menopause usually occurs in women between the ages of 45 and 55, but about one in 100 women experience it before 40.
