You know, we have this saying in medicine: children are not just little adults. And we say that to remind ourselves that children actually have a different physiology than normal adults…

…And I know the same thing can be said about women. Women are not just men with boobs and tubes. But they have their own anatomy and physiology that deserves to be studied with the same intensity.

Pretty interesting, and very applicable to skin care studies as well. This is why I always try to look for cosmetic studies that have been performed on humans.

In vitro and animal studies can provide very valuable information and are often useful for understanding mechanisms, safety limits, and possible effects.

However, as a consumer, a study with the greatest relevance would ideally be performed on a group of people that are similar to me.

This is also why a genetic health risk analysis service like 23andMe may not be super useful for someone like myself – most of the studies were performed on white, European or American, males.

Thanks for reading!

"Alyson McGregor: Why medicine often has dangerous side effects for women" on KindofStephen.