A Conversation about Environmental, Reproductive, and Women's Health with Dr. Shruthi Mahalingaiah

Our Bodies Ourselves menstrual cycle context experts Sasha Goodfriend and Sarah Pillone, interview Dr. Shruthi Mahalingaiah about her research looking at the intersection of environmental and reproductive health.

Dr. Mahalingaiah is an associate professor of environmental, reproductive, and women’s health in the Department of Environmental Health at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. She serves clinically as a physician specializing in ovulation disorders, reproductive endocrinology, and infertility at the Massachusetts General Hospital in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology.

In this interview Dr. Mahalingaiah shares her insights on how environmental factors, like air pollution, impact reproductive health. She emphasizes the need for personal awareness and advocacy, encouraging people to track their menstrual health as a vital sign and learn what is normal for their personal cycle. Dr. Mahalingaiah is hopeful that the future of research in this field will provide further understanding of the interconnectedness of environmental and menstrual health.

[00:02:38] What brought you to choose environmental, reproductive, and women’s health as your career?

[00:10:12] How was your area of study (menstrual and environmental health) received by the medical community?

[00:18:29] In your experience as a physician, what are some of the common misconceptions you see most in your practice?

[00:31:04] How did you learn what is normal for your personal menstrual cycle?

Learn more about Dr. Mahalingaiah's menstrual cycle research here: https://hsph.harvard.edu/mahalingaiah-lab/news/how-menstrual-cycles-shed-light-on-overall-health/