Perimenopause Goes Prime Time: A Growing Business in Women’s Health
Plus: Trump, Hegseth Rally Military Leaders At Controversial, Rare Meeting
Good evening,
We’re on government shutdown watch, set for midnight tonight. Right now a shutdown is looking pretty likely — but deals can be made at the last minute. There is a Senate vote tonight on a bill that would extend current funding through October 31.
At the heart of the fight is funding for Affordable Care Act insurance subsidies set to expire at the year’s end. Democrats are pushing to extend funding in the next spending bill. Republicans are saying no, but need 7 Senate Democratic votes to keep the government open.
The shutdown’s impact: About 750,000 federal employees will be furloughed (suspended, but hired back when the government reopens) during the shutdown, according to the Congressional Budget Office. They, along with congressional staffers and military service members, will not receive paychecks — costing roughly $400 million per day.
Last week the White House directed federal agencies to draw up plans for widespread firings if the government closed down. But so far, no agencies have explicitly called for terminations in their shutdown plans.
Essential services will continue, like the Postal Service, Air Traffic Control, FEMA and the National Weather Service. Cancel your plans to any national parks, though. They will be closed.
Been here before: Government shutdowns — and the threats of them — have become more common as Congress has grown more partisan. There was a record 35-day shutdown in 2018–19 during Trump’s first term; another that lasted about two weeks in 2013 under President Obama. Earlier shutdowns occurred under President Clinton in 1995–96, as well as during the Carter and Reagan administrations.
Here in D.C., it’s all anyone wants to talk about. Check out our Instagram for the latest, and we’ll have an update here tomorrow as well.
Lauren
Producer
🚨 ONE IMPORTANT THING
Perimenopause Is Becoming A Huge Focus For Women’s Health Marketing
Perimenopause – the years-long phase right before menopause – is among the fastest growing business sectors in women’s health (despite its difficulty to define and diagnose).
Common symptoms are anxiety, problems with sleep, depression, and hot flashes, with patients often diagnosed once they enter menopause.
The menopause market is valued at about $18 billion — with projections showing its growth to $24 billion by 2030. Now businesses are hoping to expand upon that by marketing to the perimenopause communities (women starting in their late 30s).
WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE
Supplements, meal plans, wearables, prescription medications, and more.
There have not been many studies on perimenopause, but an increasing number of celebrities and influencers are talking about it, leading to increased awareness.
With the lack of clear definitions of perimenopause, businesses are marketing towards younger women in their late 30s through supplements, which account for 94% of the overall menopause market.
One medical treatment for perimenopause is hormone replacement therapy, but given the wide range of perimenopause symptoms, it does not resolve every case, leading to calls for more research and studies.
BUT, HOLD ON: Women’s health experts who spoke with STAT say they’re “glad the topic is getting more attention” but they’re also skeptical of claims that all of the new products and services can “fix issues like sleep difficulties, hot flashes, mood swings, night sweats, brain fog, anxiety, hair loss, skin problems, weight gain, and low libido — many of which are symptoms that may be caused by perimenopause or by something else entirely.”
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🚨 ONE THING WE’RE FOLLOWING
Hegseth Moves To End “Woke Department”: Restores “Highest Male Standard,” Physical Intimidation In Training
At a rare in-person gathering for hundreds of U.S. military officials from around the world Tuesday, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and President Trump outlined what they see for the future of U.S. armed forces.
Trump said the military should use American cities as “training grounds” to fight against what he called a “war from within,” defending his legally-questionable deployments of US troops domestically.
Hegseth accused past administrations of turning the Defense Department, now called the Department of War, into “the woke department,” lowering standards for political reasons.
Last week, about 800 general and flag officers at the one-star level and above were told to fly to Quantico, Virginia, from their duty stations without any word about the topic of the meeting.
The extraordinary in-person meeting highlights the administration’s move toward more traditional — even stereotypical — military norms, aiming to restore a “warrior ethos” and roll back past efforts to make the military more inclusive.
MORE FROM HEGSETH
Hegseth unveiled a sweeping overhaul of the U.S. military, outlining 10 new directives aimed at restoring rigorous fitness requirements.
“Standards must be uniform, gender neutral, and high,” Hegseth declared, adding all combat positions will return “to the highest male standard.”
”Would you want [your child] serving with fat or unfit or undertrained troops? Or alongside people who can’t meet basic standards?...The answer is not just no, it’s hell no,” he said.
All service members will not need to pass a PT test and meet height and weight standards twice a year.
Rewind: Back at his confirmation hearing in January, Hegseth said that “women will have access to ground combat roles … given the standards remain high. And we’ll have a review to ensure the standards have not been eroded.”
The line of questioning came after he said in a November 2024 podcast interview, “I’m straight up just saying we should not have women in combat roles” and noted standards being lowered to hit quotas, which critics say is more about bolstering enlistment numbers than gender.
In 2015, a Marine Corps study suggested women lagged in performance and injury rates compared to their male counterparts.
Hegseth accused military leadership on Tuesday of being promoted based on “race, gender quotas, and “historic so-called firsts,” but said that will end. He also said that basic training will return to being “scary, tough and disciplined,” with drill sergeants allowed to use fear and old-school methods — from tossing bunks to “[putting] their hands on recruits.”
Warning to other nations: Hegseth also used the televised address to warn adversaries they would be “crushed with violence” if they challenged America. “In other words, to our enemies: FAFO,” Hegseth said Tuesday, the abbreviation for “f--- around, find out.”
“You kill people and break things for a living. You are not politically correct. And don’t necessarily belong always in polite society,” Hegseth said.
OVER TO TRUMP
Trump suggested using “some of these dangerous cities as training grounds” for U.S. troops. It comes as the Pentagon said Monday it will deploy 100 National Guard troops to Illinois over Democratic Gov. JB Pritzker’s objections.
Earlier this summer, Trump ordered the Guard into Los Angeles and has recently threatened to do the same in Portland. California courts ruled Trump’s move was unlawful as control of the Guard is with the governor — but each state would need to fight that battle in court.
President Trump acknowledged Tuesday the cost of summoning senior U.S. military officers from around the world but said it was worth it for a “great spiritizing” moment.
The reaction from dozens of members of the military and veterans in the Mo News community Tuesday ranged from concerned to outraged about the speeches—especially the doubling down on the deployment of the military domestically.
⏳ THE SPEED READ
🚨NATION
Second detainee dies after shooting at Dallas ICE facility (NPR)
Iowa revokes license of schools superintendent arrested by ICE, saying he is in US illegally (AP)
Dozens of Iranians to be deported from US to Iran, Tehran says (CNN)
YouTube agrees to pay Trump $24.5 million to settle lawsuit over suspended account (CNBC)
🌎 AROUND THE WORLD
Trump’s Gaza peace plan met with support, and skepticism, as world awaits Hamas’ response (NBC)
Hurricanes Humberto and Imelda charge toward Bermuda as the tiny island prepares (AP)
South Africa’s ambassador to France Nkosinathi Emmanuel “Nathi” Mthethwa found dead outside Paris hotel (CBS)
Internet blackout hits Afghanistan as Taliban enforce morality crackdown (POLITICO)
Madagascar police fire tear gas as president fails to placate protesters (BBC)
📱BUSINESS, SCIENCE & TECH
Gavin Newsom signs first-in-nation AI safety law (POLITICO)
EV sales surge in the U.S. ahead of Sept. 30 tax credit deadline (NPR)
Spotify CEO Daniel Ek to step aside (AXIOS)
Scientists use human skin cells to create functional eggs, opening a door to new infertility treatments (CNN)
🎬 SPORTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs deserves at least 11 years in prison, prosecutors say (ABC)
‘One Battle After Another’ opens with $22.4 million in North American box office (VARIETY)
Kieran Culkin’s wife says she’s pregnant after ‘Succession’ star revealed baby pact in Oscars speech (NBC)
Miami Dolphins’ Tyreek Hill dislocated his knee and tore multiple ligaments, including his ACL (ESPN)
ICYMI FROM THE 📲
In case you missed it… A Dutch producer is defending her creation of AI actress Tilly Norwood after backlash, insisting on Norwood’s Instagram account that “she is not a replacement for a human being” but art meant to spark conversation. The debate comes as AI use was a central issue in the 2023 SAG-AFTRA strikes.
“SAG-AFTRA believes creativity is, and should remain, human-centered. The union is opposed to the replacement of human performers by synthetics,” the guild said in a statement Tuesday. “To be clear, ‘Tilly Norwood’ is not an actor.”
Eline Van der Velden, who launched AI talent studio Xicoia, said the computer-generated “actress” will be signed by an agency “in the coming months.”
AI is a new tool for storytelling, Velden stressed, like animation or CGI, and stressed that nothing can replace live acting. She said at the Zurich Film Festival that studios were quietly moving forward with AI projects.
Actors slammed the project online, warning it risks erasing human performers and likening the AI character to identity theft.