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When Mariella Frostrup hit her late 40s, her life began to unravel in ways she couldn’t understand. As a well-known journalist and broadcaster, she had always been outspoken on gender issues, advocating for women’s rights globally. But suddenly, she found herself battling intense anxiety and crippling insomnia.
For two years, she searched for answers, consulting doctor after doctor; until one day, a female gynecologist finally put a name to her experience: menopause.
“It took two years to diagnose something that half the population will go through,” Frostrup told SHE Media CEO Samantha Skey during a panel at the recent Women in Work Summit in New York City.
A cultural blind spot in healthcare
Yet, what struck Frostrup most wasn’t just her delayed diagnosis. It was the stigma surrounding menopause—a natural, inevitable phase of life. Whenever she mentioned it at dinner parties or among friends, she was met with awkward silence or even “vague repulsion.”
Frustrated by this cultural blind spot, she decided to dig deeper, eventually creating the groundbreaking BBC1 documentary The Truth about Menopause in 2018 and co-authoring the book Cracking the Menopause: While Keeping Yourself Together, which was published in 2021. Frostrup also co-chairs the campaign group Menopause Mandate along with Naomi Watts, and her latest book, Menopause Is Hot: Everything You Need to Know to Thrive, is currently available for pre-order and set to be released January 21, 2025.
“We’ve created a campaigning group,” Frostrup explained. “Menopause has been a prism through which I’ve come to view the entirety of women’s health, from fertility to aging, and the obstacles we face in the workplace.”
The cost of ignoring women’s health
Frostrup was shocked to learn that women lose an average of 4% of their income after having a child and face significant financial penalties as they age, including reduced pension contributions.
“These are the consequences of simply being born with a female body,” she pointed out. “But the good news is that data is finally on our side. And it’s clear—supporting women is not charity. It’s smart economics.”
Skey chimed in, noting the resistance women often face when discussing fertility or gender issues in professional spaces, where it’s perceived as “making people uncomfortable” rather than addressing a legitimate business need.
Frostrup echoed this sentiment.
“We live in a capitalist world. Without women, you’re not going to make the same amount of profit,” she said, citing research that shows companies with women on their boards outperform those without. “If I were a shareholder in a company that didn’t support women, I’d move my investments elsewhere.”
But the problem extends beyond boardrooms, Frostrup pointed out.
“One in 10 women in the UK leaves the workforce at the peak of her career because she doesn’t feel supported through menopause,” Frostrup said. “That’s a loss of talent and experience we can’t afford.”
The global cost of failing to invest in women’s health and gender equality is staggering—trillions in lost wealth, she added.
Advocating for corporate responsibility
What’s frustrating, Frostrup said, is that companies still approach these issues as if businesses need to be nicer to women.
But she’s calling for more: “We should be more militant. This isn’t about handing out a fan for hot flashes. It’s about redesigning the workplace to accommodate women’s unique health journeys, something that has been long overlooked.”
Skey agreed, asking Frostrup what she hopes readers will take away from her new book.
“We can’t expect support if we don’t understand what’s happening to our bodies,” Frostrup responded. “This book is a companion, a resource for women who feel isolated, ashamed or afraid to talk about what they’re experiencing.”
Frostrup shared the heartbreaking reality that menopause, if left unaddressed, can have severe consequences on health. She emphasized that many women experience a range of debilitating symptoms—such as hot flashes, night sweats, mood swings and cognitive changes—that can significantly disrupt their daily lives.
Menopause as a catalyst for change
“Heart disease is the leading cause of death for women, more than all five major cancers combined,” she said. “Yet it’s linked to estrogen loss, something we rarely talk about.”
In addition, Frostrup also spoke of her mother, who suffers from dementia, and her mother-in-law, who has osteoporosis—both conditions linked to estrogen decline.
“The state of ignorance around these issues is unsustainable. We need to understand our bodies to make progress,” she said.
Frostrup and Skey closed the panel with a sense of urgency and a message of empowerment: Menopause isn’t just a phase to be endured in silence; it’s a turning point that calls for greater awareness, advocacy and action.
The stakes are high, and as Frostrup put it, “Ignorance is no longer an option.”