Ethical risks of menstrual cycle tracking and policy recommendations 

Ethical risks of menstrual cycle tracking and policy recommendations

Tracking the menstrual cylce is sometimes promoted to e.g. support female athletes to  1) reach peak performance 2) decrease injury risk 3)  increase psychological well-being. Smartphone apps and Wearables are increasingly available to track the menstrual cycle with ease.

However, there are ethical questions around:  1) Who owns the data and who should have access to it? (the athlete? The support team? The coach?) 2) Digital Privacy 3) Menstrual Cycle Tracking of Vulnerable Persons (e.g. youth athletes, pregnant athletes)

Policy Recommendations:

1) Female athletes should have the right to control the data (e.g. keeping it private or sharing the data)

2)  If data is shared, informed consent should be received from the athlete after being fully informed

3) To raise awareness and provide education to athletes, coaches, and support staff about the MC

4) For sports organizations to recognize that systematic tracking of the menstrucal cycle may facilitate abusive behaviour.

5) Blocking of data access for sports staff who have not been educated on the topic of the menstrual cycle and menstrual cycle tracking

Full Text: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/380711624_Ethical_Risks_of_Systematic_Menstrual_Tracking_in_Sport