Vertigo is two to three times more common in women than men

20% of patients with migraines may also experience vertigo

Vestibular migraine is a common cause of vertigo, affecting approximately 20% of patients with migraine. It's the most common cause of recurrent, sudden-onset vertigo.

Vertigo is considered a subtype of dizziness

This two-minute video explains vertigo—a subtype of dizziness—and its many potential causes. It explores the vestibular system, the inner ear system, which typically governs our sense of stability, and details its anatomy.

Pets can experience vertigo, particularly older dogs

This type of dizziness is often caused by disorders of the vestibular system, and in dogs is often referred to as "old dog vestibular disease" because it tends to occur in older animals. The condition tends to resolve on its own in days or weeks. Vertigo is less common among cats than dogs, and in felines is typically caused by inner ear infections or other causes including a tumor.

Vertigo can last for minutes—or months—and may occur periodically

Vertigo can be caused by a variety of conditions, including as a side effect of medication, but if it comes on suddenly and is accompanied by other symptoms including difficulty with speech or weakness on one side of the body it's important to go to the emergency room to get checked for a stroke. For recurring vertigo, care teams can teach patients exercises to limit panic, lessen nausea and teach the brain to better tolerate head movements.

Central vestibular disease is another common cause of vertigo

Unlike peripheral vestibular disease that is caused by factors like inflammation in the inner ear, central vestibular disease involves dysfunction of one or more parts of the central nervous system. Vertigo of this type may last for seconds, hours, or even days. It's typically caused by issues with the brain stem and cerebellum and could be caused by stroke, tumor, and vestibular migraine, among other conditions.

Peripheral vertigo is a type of dizziness caused by disturbances the inner ear

This type of vertigo can be triggered by several factors including viruses that cause inflammation in the inner ear, Ménière's disease, or benign paroxysmal positional vertigo, which can cause irregular nerve impulses that cause dizziness.

Dizziness may describe lightheadedness and imbalance, not the spinning of vertigo

Dizziness is defined as an altered sense of spatial orientation, and may include feeling like you might fall over. Vertigo is associated with feeling like you are spinning or your surroundings are spinning.

Vertigo is a mismatch of information between the eyes and the ears

Both vertigo and motion sickness can be caused by mismatches between visual and auditory inputs.The brain relies on inputs from the eyes, inner ear, and receptors in muscles and joints to orient the body. When the eyes suggest movement but other signals suggest the body is stationary dizziness and nausea can occur.

The word 'vertigo' derives from the Latin 'vertere,' meaning to turn

Beyond the word's origin, this article makes clear that fuzzy definitions of the disorder make it confusing for patients to describe it.

Vestibular Paroxysmia is often overlooked as a vertigo-causing diagnosis

VP causes brief, recurrent episodes of vertigo. It's often mistaken for the more common "benign paroxysmal positional vertigo," but its vertigo episodes are typically shorter and triggered by specific head movements. The condition is caused by compression of the eighth cranial nerve. Other symptoms that accompany it are nausea and unsteadiness and, more rarely, tinnitus and hearing changes.

Why dizziness is still a mystery

Dizzy spells can completely upend the lives of those suddenly struggling to find their footing. Despite this severe impact, the different flavors of dizziness and their sources continue to elude medical understanding. This article follows a health...

Eating too much salt can worsen vertigo

High salt intake can cause fluid retention in the inner ear, worsening vertigo. Slashing sodium amounts (and caffeine and alcohol consumption) are particularly recommended for those suffering from Ménière's disease to help stabilize inner ear fluid levels.

Vertigo may be reduced by retraining your brain with visual fixation

In this video podcast neuroscientist Andrew Huberman describes one way to help alleviate dizziness and motion sickness symptoms. He suggests visual anchoring—fixating your vision on a point several feet away and moving closer to it, if possible, or fixating your vision on your extended finger and slowly moving it toward your nose and away again.

Ménière's disease is a long-term, inner ear disorder that causes vertigo

This severe vertigo-causing disorder may involve long and recurrent episodes of vertigo. Symptoms of this disease include balance issues and hearing loss, tinnitus, and a feeling of fullness in the ear. It typically affects only one ear and is linked to a buildup of excess fluid in the inner ear.

Women are four times as likely to be diagnosed with seasonal depression

This prevalence trend mirrors the broader incidence of depression among women and is well-documented. Researchers suggest the disparity stems from differences in hormones, social role expectations, coping mechanisms, and more. Men may also present with depression differently, and seek help less.

See this first-person virtual reality view of vertigo

This video shows a virtual reality environment view of what benign paroxysmal positional vertigo will look like, from a first-person view. It includes a virtual rendering of eye spinning associated with the condition. (Warning: Watching this may make some users feel a bit nauseous.)

Studying involuntary, rapid eye movements is a key part of vertigo diagnosis

A doctor will look at a vertigo patient's rapid, uncontrollable eye movements—formally called nystagmus—to better understand its causes. When a patient is lying down with their head turned and their eyes spin in a certain position and stop it's likely a peripheral cause, but if the spinning doesn't stop or it changes direction it's more likely a central nervous system issue.

Women experience heightened bone loss after menopause

Both women and men begin to lose some bone density after age 35, on average. But, for the first decade after menopause, women lose bone more rapidly due to the significantly decreased levels of estrogen, putting women at heightened risk of osteoporosis and related bone fractures.

1 in 15 adults over age 40 experience phantom odors

This phenomenon was measured in a 2018 study that examined the prevalence and risk factors for phantom odor perception. Older adults were less likely to experience these phantom odors as they age, just as their overall sense of smell declines. Women are more likely than men to perceive phantom odors.

A BPPV patient describes how a neck massage fueled crippling vertigo

The pressure, she says, dislodged tiny crystals in her inner ear that are crucial to balance. The condition is called benign paroxysmal positional vertigo, or BPPV.

Marriages are more at risk when the woman is sick

A study tracking 25,000 copies over 18 years revealed marriages tend to end in divorce more often when the woman is sick. Conversely, men's health issues do not impact divorce rates. Researchers noted that increased depression, potentially as a result of financial dependence, contributes to the disparity. Generally, most marriages do not end when a spouse becomes sick.

See how a type of movement called the Epley maneuver can resolve one type of vertigo

BPPV, benign paroxysmal positional vertigo, occurs when a calcium crystal breaks off and is floating around in the inner ear. This video describes how someone suffering from this type of vertigo can determine if this is an issue and how treatment involves a movement called the Epley maneuver.

Menopause and perimenopause symptoms may affect both the mind and the body

Women going through these aging transitions may experience some common physical and mental symptoms to varying degrees, including hot flashes, bladder control issues, brain fog, and vaginal dryness. This article dives into some of the most common symptoms women might expect during perimenopause, plus what they can do to relieve them.

Anxiety is one of the world's most common mental health disorders, causing persistent excessive fear and worry that interferes with daily activities.

Menopause can exacerbate anxiety

Some research shows that menopause can fuel anxiety and also that preexisting anxiety can boost the chances of experiencing other menopause symptoms, including hot flashes, insomnia, and brain fog. But treatments—including hormone replacement therapy, breathing exercises, and other forms of exercise—can alleviate some of these symptoms.

How menopause affects mental health

Menopause, a natural biological process, occurs in three stages: perimenopause (hormone fluctuations), menopause (end of menstrual cycles), and postmenopause (12 months without menstruation). Hormonal shifts during this time can affect neurotransmitters, increasing the risk of mood disorders.

There's no cure for Ménière's disease, only medications to reduce frequency of attacks

Ménière's disease is an inner ear problem that can cause vertigo and hearing loss. Most of the time, Ménière's disease affects only one ear.

BPPV occurs when tiny calcium particles called otoconia become dislodged

WIth this condition, formally known as benign paroxysmal positional vertigo, calcium particles that normally help the brain interpret head movement and position migrate for unknown reasons into the ear's semicircular canals, sending irregular nerve impulses to the brain, which cause intense vertigo episodes.

MS disproportionately sickens women, but men tend to have worse outcomes

Though the disease is more common in women, men's symptoms progress more quickly, with men more often diagnosed with progressive MS and men's cases typically resulting in more severe symptoms—perhaps due at least partly to more delayed diagnosis—and more severe disability over time.

Women tend to tip more often than men

For instance, among people who visit hair salons or barber shops, 62% of female respondents said they always tipped. Only 45% of men said the same. This article includes more takeaways and stats about how Americans tip, and who receives them.

What to know about early and premature menopause

Although it's rare, some women may experience menopause early. Early menopause describes women that are menopausal between the ages of 40 and 45. Women that go through menopause before age 40 experience premature menopause. Early experiences of menopause impact under 6% of women, and doctors can’t point to a specific reason why it happens. Learn about what we do know about the conditions here.

Almost 80% of people diagnosed with autoimmune diseases are women

Yet it's still unanswered what may account for that difference. To better understand this disparity researchers are exploring factors including hormonal changes that occur around puberty, pregnancy, and menopause, as well as gut microbe differences, and aspects of X-chromosome protein-coding genes. (Some users may encounter a paywall.)

Autism occurs among women, too

Males have higher rates of diagnosed autism than females, but recently scientists and people with autism have been exploring if females have been disproportionately missed in screening and if girls are perhaps masking their symptoms better, leading to missed diagnoses.

By 2030, roughly 6% of the world's population will be in menopause

An estimated 25 million women pass through menopause annually, with a projected increase in the number of women in menopause in both lower-resource and higher-income populations in the years ahead, highlighting the social and economic value of focusing on menopause care.

Why young women experience the most workplace ageism

While one might assume that older women face the most unfair treatment due to age in the workplace, some research from McKinsey & Co. suggests otherwise. The consulting firm found that while ageism impacts older women and men at similar rates, women in their 20s and 30s report much higher instances of ageism than both older women and their young, male colleagues. Learn more from the research here.

Headache disorders have historically been neglected and under-researched

Confusion between the variety of headaches—from mild discomfort to debilitating pain—and gender bias—migraines primarily affect women—have led to widespread misunderstandings of the medical issue. Medical students in the US may get as little as 30 minutes of instruction on the three major types: migraines, cluster headaches, and tension-type headaches.

Females are diagnosed with MS roughly 3 to 4 times more often than males

This PBS documentary traces a filmmaker's personal journey with MS after being diagnosed at age 26. It encompasses both his efforts to stymie the disease's progression and his search for answers about the disease, when, statistically, he seemed at low risk due to his gender, lack of known family risk, and other factors.

Alzheimer's disease is the leading cause of dementia and risks rise after age 65

Read this primer about Alzheimer's disease and learn what factors increase the risk of this form of dementia, including genetics, being a woman, and health conditions, including high blood pressure.

1 in 10 US adults are taking medication for depression

A US government report indicates that about 10% of US adults took prescription medication for this disorder in 2023. Women, at 15.3%, were more than twice as likely to take one of these medications than the 7.4% of men.

Ménière's disease was first identified in 1861

This condition is named after the French clinician Prosper Ménière, who first identified it as being linked to the inner ear, noting it was a disorder of the semicircular canals. It tends to occur in people who are 40 years old or older.

Tinnitus estimates vary, but may occur in 10%-15% of the population

This video discusses the mechanisms underlying tinnitus and explores the knowns and unknowns about the condition. Tinnitus most commonly occurs among those with hearing loss, suggesting that cochlear damage may be a factor.

A 40-something science journalist was getting more winded during workouts, and experiencing night sweats, forgetfulness and tiredness—she thought it was perimenopause, but these common symptoms turned out to be signs of her blood cancer.

Why women are underrepresented in VC

Only about 11% of investing partners at venture capital firms are women, according to Harvard Kennedy School research. What’s more, only about 13% of VC dollars go to startups with a woman on the founding team. To learn more about why women are so often sidelined on both sides of the venture capital equation, click here.

40% of women will have noticeable hair loss by age 50.

The gaps in menopause research and their effects

Nearly all studies (99%) researching the biology of aging don’t consider menopause in their setup. A Harvard professor noted that about 75% of aging-related diseases are likely influenced by menopause. In this article, she discusses how gaps in research are negatively impacting how the medical system can effectively treat aging women. Read her analysis of the issue here.

Bipolar disorder, which is characterized by extreme mood swings, affects nearly 3% of the US population

There are two types of this disorder. Bipolar 1 features a significant manic episode—abnormally elevated mood and frantic energy—followed by repeated depression, while Bipolar 2 vacillates between depressive episodes and hypomania, a milder form of mania, but not a full mania. Listen to this podcast as experts explain the condition.

86 commonly used drugs, including certain antidepressants, painkillers, and immunosuppressants, have different results for men and women, according to recent research.

Women's health research continues to be underfunded

Health conditions that affect women more than men get less research funding. This interactive collection of graphs details the gendered gap in health research funding. Of the conditions that affect one sex more than another, those that create the...

Some men may be at elevated risk of inheriting tinnitus

A 2017 Swedish Twin Registry study suggests that bilateral tinnitus—when tinnitus occurs in both ears instead of just one—appears to be heritable, at least in men.

Late-onset menopause lowers osteoporosis risks, but heightens the risks for certain cancers

Defined as when a woman starts to experience perimenopause after age 55, late-onset menopause is linked to an elevated risk of developing breast, ovarian, and uterine cancers.