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BJSM calls for menopause to be sports medicine priority
A new editorial in the British Journal of Sports Medicine (BJSM) argues for menopause to be a central focus in sports and exercise medicine. The piece outlines how hormonal shifts during perimenopause and menopause impact athletic performance, recovery, and overall health, from bone density to cardiovascular risk. It signals a shift in how elite and everyday athletes' training should be considered.
A new editorial in the British Journal of Sports Medicine (BJSM) argues for menopause to be a central focus in sports and exercise medicine. The piece outlines how hormonal shifts during perimenopause and menopause impact athletic performance, recovery, and overall health, from bone density to cardiovascular risk. It signals a shift in how elite and everyday athletes' training should be considered.
The architecture take
Finally, the conversation about menopause in sports medicine gets a real platform. For too long, the 'decline' in performance for women over 40 was just shrugged off as normal aging, which is lazy at best, dismissive at worst. This isn't just about hot flashes; it's about significant shifts in bone mass, metabolism, muscle capacity, and injury risk due to declining estradiol. Ignoring this means we're designing training protocols and recovery strategies for a body that doesn't exist for half the population after a certain age. I've seen too many women push through until they break because their coaches or doctors didn't understand the hormonal undercurrent. This editorial isn't just for clinicians; it's a signal to every female athlete that the industry is finally catching up to their actual physiology. Expect to see more nuanced training advice and, hopefully, more research on performance interventions tailored to this phase.