Issue # 131 – 🎙️Philips Acquires Uvi Health | Saina Nehwal Joins Naarica | UNFPA’s New Grant Opportunity

✨Hey there! You’re reading the free edition of the FemTech India newsletter — your go-to source for the latest in women’s health, industry updates, and opportunities to help you navigate what’s next in your journey.

🎙️ In this episode, I bring you an exclusive story of two founders, who are taking over women’s health in India and they’re spilling the real stories behind their success. Mehak Malik, founder of Uvi Health, shares how she went from VC to building a fertility platform that just got acquired by Philips. Shruti Chand, founder of Naarica, reveals how she turned Saina Nehwal from a customer into a brand ambassador and investor.

From scaling strategies to celebrity deals and big exits — this is an episode you must listen.

Women make up 50% of the world — yet we’re still fighting for 1% of the funding.

Every minute, two women die from preventable causes like pregnancy complications, breast or cervical cancer — mostly due to inequitable access to care. Shockingly, only 0.2% of global R&D funding goes toward sexual and reproductive health in developing countries.

It’s time to change that. As proud members of UNFPA, FemTech India is spotlighting The Equalizer Challenge as an opportunity to fund and scale women’s health innovations. Backed by UNFPA, MIT Solve  this challenge offers equity-free funding to close the gender health gap once and for all. 

🔗 Apply now – let’s build the future of women’s health.

With 25+ years in the pharma and healthcare world, Saathealth’s founder blends deep scientific expertise with bold entrepreneurial spirit. From early days at Pfizer and Johnson & Johnson to launching her own ventures, her journey has always centered around one mission—redefining healthcare for women.

Saathealth was born to close the gap in maternal and child health, especially for underserved women. In India, women often drive health decisions for their families but neglect their own well-being. Saathealth changes that by offering holistic, affordable care beyond just pregnancy—think period care, anemia testing, teleconsults, and even health insurance—all in local languages, right at their fingertips.

Read her full story

• Cureskin launched an AI-powered hair analyser that can detect early signs of male pattern baldness and monitor hairline health. 
• Tulu Health has launched India’s first AI Agent Platform designed to address various healthcare needs.

• Homegrown wearables brand Noise has secured Rs 173 crore ($20 million) in funding from Bose corporation. 
• India- Health and wellness startup Mosaic Wellness raises $20 Mn at $400 Mn valuation
• Risa Labs, a Palo Alto, CA-based oncology AI company, raised $3.5M in funding. The round was led by Binny Bansal (Flipkart co-founder) with participation from Oncology Ventures, General Catalyst, z21 Ventures, ODD BIRD VC, and Ashish Gupta.
• Trellis Health, a San Francisco, CA-based provider of a digital health platform, raised $1.8M in Pre-Seed funding.
• Skin Analytics, a London, UK-based medtech company, raised £15m in Series B funding.The round was led by Intrepid Partners.
• Healthera, a Cambridge, UK-based provider of a patient experience platform, raised an additional £2m in funding.
• Habitual, a London, UK-based healthcare company providing weight loss solutions, raised £1M in funding.Backers included Lexham Partners.
• Osstec, a London, UK-based joint replacement implants startup using 3D printing technology, raised £2.5M in funding.The round was led by Empirical Ventures.
• Aelius Biotech, a Newcastle, UK-based biotech company providing laboratory gut models, raised £750K in funding.
• Florida-based healthtech company hellocare.ai has raised $47 million in an oversubscribed funding round to scale its AI-driven virtual care platform.

• A Danish study published in Nature Metabolism suggests that following a western diet―high in fat, sugar, and refined products while low in fish, vegetables, and fruit―during pregnancy may increase the risk of neurodevelopmental disorders, such as ADHD and autism, in children.
• A recent study published in BMC Public Health has revealed a concerning statistic: only 1.3% of Indian women aged 45 and above undergo breast cancer screening—one of the lowest rates globally. This alarming figure has prompted health experts to call for immediate policy reforms, widespread awareness initiatives, and improved infrastructure to promote early detection.
• Brushing your teeth might be doing more than just protecting your smile—it could be shielding you from chronic pain and migraines. A new study from Australia has uncovered a compelling link between poor oral hygiene and widespread body pain, especially in women suffering from fibromyalgia.
• Affectionate mothering in childhood may have a lasting impact on important personality traits, potentially influencing life outcomes such as educational achievement, economic success, and health and well-being, according to new research.
• The UK government is being urged to take action to help employers invest in supportive policies for menopause, menstruation and fertility challenges as well as pregnancy or baby loss.
• Complications during pregnancy (or adverse pregnancy outcomes), like gestational diabetes and newly developed high blood pressure, act as nature’s stress test and may uncover an individual’s risk for heart disease later in life, according to new research.
• One in 31 children in the United States are diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder by their 8th birthday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported Tuesday. The finding, based on an analysis of medical records from 2022, reflects a dramatic rise in autism over the past two decades. Previous CDC reports showed that 1 in 54 8-year-olds had been diagnosed with autism in 2016. In 2000, it was 1 in 150.
• Eating combinations of common food additives may be tied to a slightly increased risk of Type 2 diabetes, according to a study published Tuesday in the journal PLOS Medicine. A growing body of evidence has linked certain food additives to cancer, diabetes, heart disease and changes to the gut microbiome. Many of these studies, however, were focused on single ingredients.
• A pill developed by GSK was found to be safe and effective in treating gonorrhea in a late-stage clinical trial, according to a study published in The Lancet. If approved, it would become the first new class of antibiotic for the sexually transmitted infection in more than two decades.
• Technology use may be associated with a lower risk for dementia, study finds. That’s a question researchers from two Texas universities sought to answer in a new meta-analysis study, a review of previous studies, published Monday in the journal Nature Human Behavior. The query investigates the “digital dementia hypothesis,” which argues that lifetime use may increase reliance on technology and weaken cognitive abilities over time.

• IKS Health, a global care enablement solutions provider, has announced an expanded partnership with OrthoNY, a leading orthopedic and pain management group based in New York’s Capital Region. 
• Trellis Health, a digital health platform focused on empowering women with personalized, proactive care, has emerged from stealth mode with $1.8 million in pre-seed funding. The company is led by former Illumina commercial leader Estelle Giraud.
• 49Care, a women’s health innovation company, has launched SELF Menopause, the first at-home menopause test kit approved by Health Canada. The product is now available in pharmacies across Canada, offering women a private and convenient way to track their menopause journey from their homes.
• Wellcome Leap has announced a $50 million program called “The Missed Vital Sign” focused on addressing heavy menstrual bleeding (HMB) and transforming how menstruation is viewed in healthcare.
• Amara Therapeutics has announced the launch of a randomised controlled trial evaluating the efficacy and safety of its prescription digital therapeutic (PDTx) for the treatment of overactive bladder (OAB) in women.

• Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta has announced that 1,69,000 Ayushman cards are ready for distribution. These cards enable lakhs of senior citizens aged 70 and above to access health coverage of INR 5 lakh under the Vay Vandana Yojana (VVY).
• The Union Health Ministry has restricted use of common cold drug combination Chlorpheniramine Maleate and Phenylephrine Hydrochloride for children below four years of age and asked the manufacturers to mention the related warning on the label and package insert of the drug.
• The Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) has released a pathway for the grant of product license to be followed by the State Licensing Authorities (SLAs) for a disinfectant and antiseptic fixed dose combination (FDC) declared as rational by its expert committee.

📳 – Quick Reads: 

• Can eating almonds daily help control blood sugar in Asian Indians?Studies show that consuming almonds can help improve metabolic health by reducing ‘bad’ cholesterol and increasing beneficial gut bacteria
• Sleep deprivation can hurt your liver, here’s why. Do you experience sleep deprivation, sleep apnea, obesity, diabetes, or indulge in excessive alcohol consumption? Read on to know why they hurt your liver
• How fat imaging helps in combating obesity, lifestyle disordersFat imaging helps in the better understanding of fat distribution in the body and guide individuals towards lifestyle modifications

🎉Have news to share? Publish a press release on FemTech India to reach industry-leading executives, investors, and passionate individuals.

See you next Friday, friends 👋
Navneet

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