UC Santa Barbara neuroscientist Dr. Emily Jacobs talked about how the human brain changes during major hormonal transitions, and the lack of diversity in medical research, during a Saturday event about women’s health.
“These events are about bringing the community together,” Jacobs told Noozhawk after the talk at Direct Relief’s Hatch Hall hosted by UCSB Affiliates and the Santa Barbara Women’s Health Coalition.
“There’s so many different ways the women in our community can leverage their unique talents and time to push for change right in our backyard.”
She talked about how little information medical professionals know about what happens to women’s brains during menopause. She credited that to the fact that most universities don’t have classes about menopause, and if they do, it’s an elective.
“It’s become clear to many of us in this space that positioning women’s health as equal to men’s health is going to require a global shift in science culture,” Jacobs said.
She remarked how the scientific body of knowledge does not serve the sexes equally, due to many tests and research studies being conducted on men or animals like rats.
“For scientists, data is our currency,” Dr. Jacobs said. “It’s the thing that does the heavy lifting, it solves the problems, it changes lives, if we gather it. We need better data.”
The need for better data is what brought forth the Ann S. Bowers Women’s Brain Health Initiative. The initiative formally launches in November and aims to advance studies of women’s brain health through collaborative research. Jacobs’ lab at UCSB is part of this initiative.
Her lab is focusing on the changes that happen to women’s brains during their menstrual cycle, pregnancy, and menopause.
Jacobs told Noozhawk that UCSB has been “incredibly supportive” of the initiative and has made sure they have the necessary resources.
“Women’s health has been chronically understudied and underfunded in neurosciences,” she said. “The mission of the initiative is to create the data that’s been missing for 30 years.”