Combat hot flushes with cool sportswear

Siri Schubert

19.12.2023

Translation: machine translated

Hot flushes, outbreaks of sweating, mood swings, an expanding body centre - the menopause is not for the faint-hearted. It is therefore considered taboo. Femography wants to change that and designs stylish leggings, bras and tops for women going through the menopause.

According to demographic calculations, 1.1 billion women worldwide will go through the menopause by 2025. Around 75 per cent of women in this phase of life experience hot flushes, sweating and other physical changes that affect their work and leisure time. Their athletic performance suffers, as does their motivation to do sport.

However, it is particularly important for women going through the menopause to remain physically active. This is because both muscle mass and bone density decrease as oestrogen levels fall. Even the protection against cardiovascular problems, including heart attacks and strokes, provided by the female sex hormones decreases during the menopause. These are all good reasons to exercise during this phase of life.

Clothing for women and real needs

However, the topic has been taboo in the sportswear industry until now. Anyone looking for clothing for the menopause at major sports brands quickly realised that there was nothing. With one exception: back in 2014, Femography, a Sri Lankan company belonging to MAS Holding, began researching materials to better meet the needs of women at all stages of life. MAS Holding has around 30 years of experience in the manufacture of sportswear and produces for brands such as Nike, Speedo, Ralph Lauren, Triumph, New Balance and Odlo, among others.

Together with a German institute and three British universities, the Femography team developed and tested the now patented "anti-flush" technology, which is designed to manage heat, sweat and the subsequent chills and odours. In addition to sportswear, the company also developed nightgowns and everyday underwear for menopausal women.

Leggings for menopause win ISPO Award

Femography is actually a B2B company that produces women's specific clothing such as period underwear for various brands. But with their fresh and appealingly designed sportswear for the menopause, they fell on deaf ears with many brands. No one wanted to tackle the taboo subject of addressing physical symptoms such as irregular bleeding, uncontrolled sweating and incontinence. "But we didn't want to let our technology disappear into a drawer," said CEO Pilar Diaz in an interview at the international sports trade fair ISPO in Munich. So she and her team launched their own brand under the name "Become" for women who are sporty, active and going through the menopause.

The belief in the idea and the product has paid off: Femography was honoured with a "Best Product" award in the "Textrends - Clothing" category at ISPO for the menopause leggings. In addition to the sweat and heat-regulating fabric, the leggings have a leak-proof and absorbent gusset with antibacterial and odour-inhibiting properties. This is intended to help manage urinary incontinence and irregular bleeding during the menopause. "We know that the menopause brings unique challenges that women have had little to no support in dealing with," says Pilar. "We want to help them navigate this phase of life with style and confidence."

The ISPO jury also recognised the intrepid approach to this topic: "The special needs of women in sport have only recently begun to be taken into account in the sports and fashion industry", according to the explanatory statement for the award ceremony. "Leggings for menopausal women that alleviate all unpleasant side effects such as hot flushes and incontinence are a novelty and will certainly help many women to feel more comfortable during sport and in everyday life," argued the jury.

Fighting taboos in men's clothing too

While Femography is primarily dedicated to women-specific challenges with clothing for periods, pregnancy and breastfeeding as well as the menopause, the team has not completely lost sight of men either.

In addition to women's clothing, there are now also sports underwear for men who suffer from incontinence. Femography is thus tackling another topic that is almost never talked about in the often perfectionism-driven sports world. Femography also won an ISPO award for this product in the "Men's Comfort" category.

Siri Schubert

Senior Editor

Siri.Schubert@digitecgalaxus.ch

Research diver, outdoor guide and SUP instructor – I love being in, on and around water. Lakes, rivers and the ocean are my playgrounds. For a change of perspective, I look at the world from above while trail running or flying drones.

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