In celebration of Mother’s Day and Women’s Day, Apple held a “Women’s Health Majlis” at Sima Space in Riyadh, where a number of female influencers and journalists gathered to learn about the new features of the Apple Watch, including how to use it to help women track their menstrual cycle.
The event, held on March 18, examined menstruation health in immense detail through an in-depth presentation on Apple’s Cycle Tracking feature and the Apple Women’s Health Study, along with a brief speech from Apple Vice President of Health Sumbul Desai.
The program was led by internal medicine expert Aarti Javeri-Mehta and lifestyle medicine physician Dana Saeed.
A widespread hormonal ailment known as polycystic ovarian syndrome, or PCOS, which affects women of reproductive age, was also discussed.
“One in four women in the Middle East and North Africa is diagnosed with PCOS, which is a huge number, and many are undiagnosed because a lot of the time people are normalizing the change in their periods timing as they have been experiencing this throughout the years,” Saeed said.
She said that period irregularity is a symptom of PCOS, and therefore, tracking the cycle is important to diagnose a hormonal imbalance.
“It is crucial to recognize these conditions as soon as possible in order to help prevent some forms of cancer. This is where technology can help; if we can detect and become aware of what’s happening early on, we are more likely to be able to possibly manage it,” added Saeed.
During the event, the presenters guided the audience on the use of Apple Watch for women’s health and meditation.
Menstrual cycle tracking goes far beyond the reproductive system, according to Javeri-Mehta. Through tracking, a patient can have a deeper understanding of her body, particularly if she suffers from conditions such as endometriosis.
“Your menstrual cycle has a significant impact on your quality of life, aside from the evolutionary reason that periods exist at all — basically, we should be able to conceive each month, and if we aren’t, we get our period. However, it goes much deeper than that since it simply illustrates how out of balance our hormones are in our bodies,” she said.
“Estrogen is protective when considering that the hormone is essentially the most abundant in our bodies while we are women in the premenopausal age range. It is safeguarded for both our heart and blood vessels. Our lipid profile, including cholesterol levels, is improved by it. Estrogen is very important as a marker of brain health as well. So, it’s protective against certain conditions like Alzheimer’s disease,” added Javeri-Mehta.
During the event, attendees had the opportunity to test out the new Apple Watch in a variety of colors and band styles, utilize its capabilities, and discover its various health benefits for women.
