Menopause Health Content Writing: From Taboo to Trending

Just a few years ago, menopause was an afterthought for many brands and health organizations. There was nothing new or sexy about covering the topic. Menopause was dismissed as just an ‘old woman’s issue.’ With no new breakthrough science and limited treatment options that were considered risky, no brand wanted to touch the topic. Menopause didn’t fit into their women’s health content strategy. Fast forward to today, and boy, have things changed.

Cultural and clinical shifts around menopause have occurred due to a convergence of new treatments approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Gen X women demanding better care, and celebrities from Halle Berry to Drew Barrymore openly discussing their experiences. Menopause is now on the front page and trending up. To keep up with the significant cultural realignment around the topic, editors are seeking content that raises the bar for women.

Why Menopause Health Content Has Changed

For years, menopause was a topic whispered about as ‘the change’ or, worse, completely not talked about. In the 1960s-1970s, interest in menopause began growing when hormone treatments became available, and women began talking. As more hormonal treatments entered the marketplace, interest continued to grow. Then, in the early 2000s, a study called the Women’s Health Initiative (WHI) found increased risks for breast cancer, stroke, and blood clots. The popularity of hormones tanked, along with any interest in menopause care.

Menopause, once again, was not being talked about. This led to many women starting the menopause transition completely unprepared. The medical community had very limited treatment options to offer, and education on menopause dropped off. The only information millions of women heard about this health issue was the hot flashes and mood swings that popular media made light of.

Then, as Gen X’rs began transitioning into menopause. These women, still fully active in the workplace, began to feel the impact of the menopausal transition on their work and home lives. They began questioning their care. Video-based content – such as TikTok and Facebook Reels - became a big factor with women openly sharing their symptoms and talking about their experiences. Women are demanding more than just pat advice about dressing in layers for hot flashes.

The medical community is also raising awareness on menopause with the advent of new treatment options beyond hormone therapy for symptom management. Researchers looked back over the evidence from the damaging WHI study only to find that the risks of hormone therapy were overstated. More attention is being paid to other health problems that occur in menopause, such as bone loss and cardiovascular issues. This new attention to menopause has health content for women over 40 booming.

Brands are evolving to meet the growing demand for menopause—and perimenopause—health content. To attract an audience, move beyond just hot flashes and mood swings with a more targeted content strategy. A key approach is to use long-tail keywords—short, specific phrases of three or more words—which will attract more eyes to your content. Think of them as niche topics. Some examples include:

• Benefits and risks of hormone replacement therapy

• Using testosterone for low libido in women

• Managing surgical menopause after hysterectomy

• Supplements for menopause, brain fog, and anxiety

Using long-tailed keywords is a more efficient method for your audience to find you. They also help you rank better with the search engines.

What Editors Want: 5 Evolving Standards

With more eyes on menopause, editors want higher standards for their menopause coverage. They want better information than how to manage hot flashes with a fan. Here are five evolving standards editors are now looking for.

Evidenced-based framing

There is a lot of misinformation about healthcare being shared on social media. Editors don’t want writers who are just rehashing TikTok trends. They want writers who understand the science behind the health information. Your content needs to use evidence-based sources. The best of these come from:

• Peer-reviewed studies,

• The National Institute of Health (NIH)

• The Menopause Society

Intersectionality

This is a big one. Menopause affects one-third of a woman’s life. This means coverage needs to span decades – from midlife to the end of life. You also must cover cultural and racial perspectives. Menopause is a shared experience that has many intersections, but not all populations will have the same experience.

Clinical authority and patient voice working together

People are savvy about their health, but still need clear recommendations and guidelines. The writing in menopause health content needs to be patient-centered while remaining clinically relevant. Respect the idea of shared decision-making between your patients and healthcare providers.

Bridge the gap between HCP and patient audiences

Following the WHI study, an entire generation of HCPs did not receive education in treating menopause and perimenopause. I still hear from patients who say their doctor won’t treat them due to not knowing how, not believing the treatment is safe, or that they don’t believe perimenopause is “a real thing.”

The content strategy in women’s health often needs to be translated for both health providers who lack knowledge and the patients they will be discussing it with. Do this by:

• Blending patient narratives with real-world clinical advice

• Use case studies

• Lace your educational content with peer voices

• Add easy-to-digest short-form content

Less ‘wellness’ and more medicine

Wellness is a fallacy that is driving a culture of perfectionism. We can’t make everyone ‘well’ or perfect and shouldn’t try to push this narrative. Instead, focus your content on true, medically based information. For example, don’t promote unnecessary testing, screenings, and treatments.

Using the Uniquely Positioned Nurse Writers To Fill Gaps

The clinical nuances of health content for women can get overlooked. This is where nurse writers can fill that gap. Nurse writers understand those nuances. A great example is vaginal dryness. A nurse knows this is a symptom, not a diagnosis. Some writers may pick up that vaginal dryness is a symptom of atrophic vaginitis. But miss that atrophic vaginitis is now known by a completely different name – genitourinary syndrome of menopause (GSM). This issue encompasses much more than just vaginal dryness.

When a nurse with experience working one-on-one with patients writes, the content will have an empathetic tone that draws the audience. You just can’t replace the experience of speaking to patients firsthand when they are vulnerable, wearing nothing but a gown, and sharing a fear about their health.

A nurse writer’s health background also brings the knowledge of clinical care pathways. These pathways are the map of “what, when, and who” of a patient’s experience. A care pathway covers everything a patient may go through, from diagnosis through treatment, follow-up, and beyond. This means a nurse knows the tests and the multidisciplinary teams involved in managing a health concern and can add that context when creating women’s health content.

Ultimately, menopause health content continues to evolve and demands more depth from writers. By considering the diversity of your audience—from age span to lived experiences and cultural differences—and grounding your information in science-backed evidence that prioritizes health over the idea of wellness, you'll meet rising expectations. If this is the type of women’s health content you want for your audience, connect with me here to get started.