This article is from the WebMD Feature Archive

May 5, 2003 -- Move over, plain aspirin. Make room for Women's Tylenol Menstrual Relief and Bayer Women's Aspirin Plus Calcium. Don't get too comfortable, oatmeal, water, protein bars, and supplements. Women's products are coming soon to the aisle space next to you -- if they are not already there!

These days, the aisles in health, food, and drug stores are chock full of products specifically formulated for women, but are these products really any better than traditional formulations, or are they just a marketing ploy? Depends on the product and the woman, experts tell WebMD.

"I am encouraged by the introduction of new products specifically targeting women if only because it shows that we are paying attention to the unique needs of women customers," says women's health expert Donnica Moore, MD, of Neshanic Station, N.J.

These new products "call women's attention to the fact that they may have specific health needs that they are overlooking," she says.

For example, Moore says, "Bayer Women's Aspirin Plus Calcium calls women's attention to two very specific health needs: the use of low-dose aspirin for cardiac risk reduction and the use for calcium for improved bone health, and the new formulation simplifies these two needs into one pill."

That's good medicine, she adds.

Still, she says, "as with any over-the-counter (OTC) product, read the label, know what it is you are taking and why you are taking it, and if have any questions about whether these products are in your best interest, ask your pharmacist or doctor," she says.

Marianne J. Legato, MD, professor of clinical medicine at the College of Physicians and Surgeons and founder and director of Partnership for Women's Health, both at Columbia University, is not quite as optimistic. "These products are manufactured by marketing pressures more then by medical concerns. I am always suspicious of an old dog with a new name," says Legato, author of several books, including Eve's Rib: The New Science of Gender-Specific Medicine and How It Can Save Your Life.

Women's Tylenol Menstrual Relief contains acetaminophen, a pain reliever, and pamabrom, a diuretic, to reduce bloating that may occur around menstruation, but women should talk to their doctor before taking a diuretic, Legato says.

"I'd rather a woman go to her physician and say, 'Do I need this? And if so, why?'" she says.

That's not to say all such products are bad news, she says. "If the products are evidence-based on sound data which is the result of a clinical trial powered to see if there is a gender difference, it would be a worthy reason for making a special pill," she says.

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