VICE on PERIOD.: "You Know When You Bleed, But Not Why"

Today VICE published a piece we're incredibly proud of, not because we're in it, but because it asks the question that's been unanswered for far too long: why do so many women know when they bleed, but not why?

Journalist Pelle Folman dove into the booming market of menstrual cycle apps for VICE NL and laid bare an uncomfortable truth: while millions of women download apps to understand their bodies, their most intimate data, periods, contraception, libido, mood, fertility, is being traded as a data package. Read the full article here.

Why this story matters

VICE describes how sensitive health data in the app industry ends up with third parties without clear consent. That's not an incident, it's the business model. And that model thrives on something that's been around for generations: body illiteracy. Women aren't taught how their cycle actually works. Not at school, not by their GP, often not even by their mother.

"I only kept track of when I was due to bleed. But the fact that your cycle affects your daily life, that's something you learn nowhere.", Lisa Volkers in VICE (translated)

Cycle expert Lara Briden adds why that knowledge gap is so stubborn:

"Most people, including doctors, only think about the bleed.", Lara Briden in VICE (translated)

What our founder Lisa had to say

In the article, Lisa Volkers, founder of PERIOD. explains why she built the app:

"I went to other apps to be taken seriously. Instead I got flowers, pink edges, and ads. And meanwhile my data was being sold. That had to change."

And she closes with a clear call, not just to tech companies, but to education and healthcare:

"We need to start taking this seriously and stop brushing it off.", Lisa Volkers in VICE (translated)

Within two weeks of launch, PERIOD. had over 10,000 users. The recurring response: "I needed this so badly." And: "I finally understand my body."

What PERIOD. does differently

• Privacy-first. No ads, no tracking, no selling your data. Period.
• Female-first. Built by women, for women, without the infantilising pink flowers.
• Educational. We explain what the luteal phase is, why your energy fluctuates, and why ovulation is the engine of your cycle.
• Free & ad-free. Because basic knowledge about your own body shouldn't be a luxury product.

The bigger picture

As VICE puts it: cycle apps mostly fill a gap that shouldn't exist in the first place. Education and healthcare drop the ball. And until that changes, it's left to women to figure it out themselves, via apps, algorithms, and each other.

We think that needs to change. And until it does? We're building the app we wish we had.

Read the piece

The full article is on VICE NL (in Dutch). Worth your time, not just because we're in it, but because it opens a conversation we've avoided for far too long.

Download PERIOD. (App Store · Google Play) and experience for yourself what a cycle app feels like without a hidden revenue model.