Frida, a personal care brand, has launched an adult-only online platform that features tutorial videos on fertility, prenatal, and postpartum products in response to the lack of authentic representations of women’s bodies in mass advertising. The platform, developed with health professionals, offers explicit content that is often censored on social media and television networks. Frida CEO Chelsea Hirschhorn argues for a safe space where necessary information can be disseminated without censorship.
The brand has faced challenges getting its ads approved on various platforms such as ABC, Amazon, and Instagram due to content guidelines that restrict female body representation. Frida’s products related to fertility and breast health have often been censored and removed from social media, despite offering important information for women’s health. The company believes that showing female bodies in a non-sexualized context should be allowed for educational purposes, especially when it comes to reproductive and women’s health issues.
Meta, the parent company of Instagram, has come under fire for restricting content related to female reproductive health and partially lifting some restrictions recently. Critics argue that ads that sexualize women are typically allowed, while those addressing women’s pain or providing important health information are more likely to be rejected. Women’s bodily functions and health concerns have long been seen as taboo topics, even as women’s pain and health issues are often dismissed by healthcare professionals.
A report published by Canada’s Alberta Women’s Health Foundation found that taboos around women’s health issues can lead to worse health outcomes due to reduced awareness of conditions like menstruation symptoms and loss of bladder control. Ads for bladder control aids and menstruation symptoms have helped raise awareness for these conditions, but there is still progress needed to make information more publicly available. Funding alone cannot improve women’s health outcomes – the dissemination of information about women’s health is crucial for better health-related quality of life.
Frida’s decision to launch the Frida Uncensored platform was influenced by CEO Chelsea Hirschhorn’s own experiences with navigating her health throughout puberty. The platform aims to provide important health information that is often censored in mainstream media. Chloe Bird, director of the Center for Health Equity Research at Tufts Medical Center, highlights the importance of openly discussing women’s health topics and breaking down taboos in order to improve health outcomes and quality of life for women. She emphasizes the need for information on women’s health to be disseminated in a clear and accessible manner.
Bird suggests that shifts in social norms and practices around discussing women’s bodies and health take time and require more women in decision-making roles within media companies. The cultural lag in accepting and promoting authentic representations of women’s bodies and health experiences requires a shift in mindset and a move towards more inclusive and informative content. By providing access to information and breaking down taboos, platforms like Frida Uncensored aim to empower women to take control of their health and well-being.
