The Business of Menopause: Opportunity, Overreach, and How Women Can Protect Themselves

By Dr. Betsy A.B. Greenleaf

Menopause has moved from the shadows to center stage. Venture-backed startups are launching clinics. Beauty brands are repackaging old products with “menopause” slapped on the label. Newsrooms and boardrooms alike finally whisper the same thing out loud: half the population will go through this. That’s not niche—that’s normal.

From Taboo to Market Surge

Global populations are aging, and midlife women are the fastest-growing, most economically powerful consumer segment. Millions enter perimenopause each year, creating steady demand for answers, relief, and community. When investors see a large, underserved market with recurring needs, they see opportunity.

Women aged 40–65 often control household budgets, outspend other cohorts in health and beauty, and remain loyal when they feel seen. That spending power has driven a wave of clinics, programs, apps, supplements, and subscriptions. Taboo is expensive: when people can’t talk about symptoms—sleep chaos, hot flashes, brain fog, libido changes—they waste money guessing. Today’s movement is a course correction: frank conversations, better options, and permission to advocate for your body without apology.

What Makes Up the Menopause Industry

The “menopause economy” stretches far beyond hormone therapy. It spans clinical care, products, tech, and media:

• Clinical Care Models:
  • Traditional OB/GYN or primary care (insurance-based, but often rushed).
  • Concierge, functional, and integrative clinics (longer visits, holistic focus, often cash-pay or hybrid).
  • Telehealth clinics offering licensed clinicians, prescriptions, coaching, and content.
• Memberships & Subscriptions: Many clinics sell monthly packages with visits, messaging, renewals, and curated products. Predictable costs can help but may turn into a treadmill if results don’t follow.
• Products:
  • HRT (Hormone Replacement Therapy): FDA-approved patches, pills, gels, vaginal estrogen with strong safety and efficacy data.
  • Supplements: From phytoestrogens to sleep blends; quality varies wildly.
  • Lubricants & moisturizers: Boost comfort, intimacy, and life quality.
  • Devices: Pelvic floor trainers or vaginal tech may help, though evidence is mixed.
• Diagnostics & At-Home Testing: Saliva, urine, and finger-prick blood tests can help in narrow contexts but are often oversold. If a test feels like a horoscope for your hormones, pause.
• Media, Apps & Communities: Podcasts, forums, trackers, diaries, and “meno-coaches” create support—but beware when community morphs into constant upsell.

This growing sector has upsides: open conversations, earlier symptom recognition, employer benefits (flexible work, specialist visits, temperature-controlled spaces), telehealth access, and overdue research into hormone therapy timing, non-hormonal tools, and menopause’s impact on heart, brain, bone, and sexual health.

Hype, Costs, and How to Spot Real Help

Any boom attracts opportunists. Some brands repackage generic creams as “menopause” solutions with inflated prices. Beware miracle claims like “detox” or “reset”—menopause isn’t a toxin. One-size-fits-all programs ignore genetics, history, and goals. Apps may harvest sensitive data without clear consent. Care gaps still leave women of color, LGBTQ+ individuals, and people with disabilities underserved.

Evidence 101 – Spotting Quality:

• Look for guidance from reputable medical groups and links to peer-reviewed research.
• FDA-approved hormones are regulated for purity and dose; compounded versions may help with allergies or unusual dosing but lack oversight.
• Supplements need third-party testing (USP, NSF) and human trials, not just rodent studies.
• Targeted labs work when led by a clinician; broad “insight” panels mislead.
• Energy-based vaginal devices can relieve symptoms, but only after weighing benefits, risks, and practitioner training.

Money Matters: Clinics earn from visit fees, memberships, products, labs, and procedures—transparency is key. Ask for itemized pricing and alternatives. Prioritize proven therapies before splurging on shiny gadgets.

Protection Playbook, Privacy, and the Future

Buying Checklist for Products:

• Evidence from guidelines or clinical trials.
• Clear labeling with exact ingredients.
• Third-party quality seals (USP/NSF).
• Realistic claims—avoid “cure” or “balance hormones in 7 days.”
• Fair return policies; check interactions with meds.

Clinic & Telehealth Checklist:

• Verify credentials and training.
• Cover hormonal and non-hormonal paths.
• Explain risks and benefits of HRT or procedures.
• Use labs to guide care, not profits.
• Transparent pricing and cancellation rules.
• HIPAA-compliant platforms and readable privacy policies.

Influencer BS Detector:

• Red flags: undisclosed affiliate links, exaggerated before/after photos, jargon-heavy promises.
• Green flags: citations, balanced pros/cons, reminders to consult a clinician.

Data & Privacy Guardrails:

• Share only what’s necessary.
• Confirm you can download or delete data.
• Paid apps often protect better than ad-supported ones.

Looking ahead, progress depends on diverse research, smarter regulation, ethical marketing, and services designed for real-world women—shift workers, rural communities, people with disabilities, and all skin tones. The menopause business can honor dignity and deliver relief, or it can sell empty promises. The power lies in evidence, transparency, and partners who treat you as a person, not just a pipeline.