Empowering women's health by unlocking the vaginal microbiome | Sarah Ahannach | TEDxKU Leuven
Revolving around a long taboo subject, Sarah Ahannach enlightens us about the Vaginal Microbiome. Ranging from her experiences to the extraordinary collective effort in the research, she shines light onto an overlooked subject. Sarah is a postdoctoral researcher at the Bioscience Engineering Department at the University of Antwerp, specializing in the intricate relationship between women and their microbiomes. Passionate about bridging gender data and health inequities, she believes a multidisciplinary approach fosters innovation in women's health research.Her work extends beyond academia, actively advocating for women in STEM and using technology to enhance women's health and safety. She plays a key role in Isala, the world's first citizen science project empowering women to explore their vaginal microbiome in a groundbreaking and taboo-breaking way. At the University of Antwerp, Isala maps the vaginal microbiome, examines lifestyle and environmental influences, and pioneers new diagnostics and microbiome-based therapeutics. Since its 2020 launch, the initiative has expanded to 20 countries, addressing diverse topics such as fertility, pregnancy, menstrual health, sexual violence, and nutrition.Committed to scientific outreach, Sarah engages in public discussions and communication on women's health and diversity in STEM. Through research, advocacy, and education, she strives to equip women with knowledge to take control of their health and contribute to lasting change in the field of women's health research. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx
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