Why women's diseases go undetected (and how to spot the signs) – with Meghan Rabbitt
Age Better with Liz Earle
Liz Earle
4.6 • 1.5K Ratings
🗓️ 24 April 2026
⏱️ 47 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Heart disease kills more women than all cancers combined, but symptoms are often missed because diagnostic tools were designed for men. Health journalist Meghan Rabbitt talks to Liz about why medicine has been getting women's health wrong for decades and how to protect ourselves.
They discuss how the differences in the female body require a more nuanced approach to healthcare, and how heart attack symptoms in women can be more subtle.
Meghan also explains how menopause can increase our risk of heart disease, dementia and autoimmune conditions – and the practical steps we can take to safeguard our health at every age.
In this episode:
· Why healthcare isn’t a one-size-fits-all approach
· The link between low oestrogen and Alzheimer’s
· Why HRT might protect you from heart disease
· Calculating your breast cancer risk
· Ways to future-proof your health
Links mentioned in the episode:
· Calculating your breast cancer risk
· Lily Earle chronic pain coaching
More from Meghan:
· The New Rules of Women’s Health
Get in touch with a question for Liz:
· Email: podcast@lizearlewellbeing.com
· WhatsApp: 07518 471 846
More from Liz:
• Order Liz's new book – How to Age
• Follow Liz Earle Wellbeing on Instagram
Some links may be affiliate links, which help support the show at no extra cost to you. Read our Affiliate Policy for more information.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | For far too many years, we studied the male body and applied what we found to women, |
| 0:07.1 | assuming that we were small men with just a few different parts. |
| 0:10.9 | And what we now know is that is ludicrous, right? |
| 0:14.2 | The female brain is different than the male brain. |
| 0:16.5 | The female heart is different than the male heart. |
| 0:18.7 | We need to be studying women in their own right |
| 0:21.8 | to understand these differences and to then understand like how we need treatment differently. |
| 0:28.9 | Megan Rabbit is an award-winning journalist writing about women's health and she's adamant that |
| 0:34.8 | the female body deserves specific medical research if our health |
| 0:39.6 | outcomes are to improve. I'm Liz Earle. Welcome to Age Better. I'm sure you guys know by now |
| 0:46.2 | that it is my mission to change the conversation around aging because women's health, |
| 0:50.9 | particularly as we age, has been so underfunded and overlooked for far, far too long. |
| 0:57.2 | And frankly, it's time we push back. |
| 0:59.9 | Well, someone doing a brilliant job pushing back is Megan Rabbit. |
| 1:03.4 | She is known for translating complex medical topics into really clear, actionable information |
| 1:10.1 | and for telling stories that help readers better |
| 1:13.0 | understand their bodies and their health. Now, she's written a great new book. It's called |
| 1:17.6 | The New Rules of Women's Health, Your Guide to Thriving at Every Age. What a great title. I know we're |
| 1:24.1 | going to have so much in common because like me, she is not happy that the medical field has long ignored women's unique health needs. |
| 1:33.6 | So her book is based on the latest solely women-centered research and insights from the world's top female health experts. |
| 1:43.0 | So why on earth is it that 80% of women aged 55 and older have at least one chronic condition, |
| 1:51.3 | like asthma, arthritis, cancer or cardiovascular disease? |
... |
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