Women's health brands are having a hard time addressing women's health concerns on Facebook as ads are flagged as adult content, MM+M reported Jan. 21.
MM+M cited a study released Jan. 11 by the Center for Intimacy Justice that surveyed 60 health startups that served women and people of diverse genders.
The study found that every startup has had ads censored and rejected on Facebook, while 50 percent of companies said they have had their accounts suspended because of their advertisements.
Rejected ads included information regarding menopause, pregnacy, postpartum care, menstrual health, fertility, sexual wellness and pelvic pain.
Desiree Natali, senior social media manager at feminine-hygiene brand the Honey Pot, told MM+M that women's health ads are disproportionately targeted by the social media platform as words referring to women's sexual anatomy are labled as adult content, nudity, overly suggestive or sexually provocative.
Suspensions on Facebook are not always temporary, either — when health companies file for an appeal, the review can be pending for years, the article reported.
"There is immaturity and sexism that comes with banning things that deal with women's bodies," Kristie Kuhl, managing partner and global health practice leader at Finn Partners, told MM+M. "When we even [have to] think about how to communicate and get around these shadow bans, it really puts us back into a time where we should be ashamed because we're women. I don't want to go there and I don't think the world wants to go there."