Women

On International Women's Day, why do we ignore mothers?

I bought my purple ribbon, attended a talk and heard once again about the underrepresentation of women on boards and in executive roles.

And the breakfasts: oh, the breakfasts. So many to choose from, all with interesting speakers and fantastic spreads at fancy hotels.

But this is my first International Women's Day as a mother, and I'm just hoping to be able to fit in a coffee before my baby wakes up.

Like in previous years, I looked for IWD events to attend.

Ryan Murphy shows support for 'A Day Without Women'

Producer Ryan Murphy, the man behind "American Horror Story" and "Feud," is showing his support for A Day Without Women by telling the female employees of his production company not to show up for work.

"In honor & support of tomorrow's A DAY WITHOUT A WOMAN, ALL the women in my company will not be working," he wrote on Twitter. "So in short, nothing will get done."

You need to try the new neon light makeup trend

But now the trend is becoming a lot more accessible through the latest craze: fluorescent light-inspired makeup looks.

Yep, that's right. Your eyes or lips can actually look like they're glowing, thanks to skillful recreations of those same neon lights that fill your feeds.

Jane Fonda reveals rape and child abuse

In an interview with fellow Oscar winner Brie Larson for The Edit, the 79-year-old also said she had once lost a job because she refused her boss's sexual advances.

The star added she thought being a young actress now was "terrifying" because of female sexualisation.

"You have to get naked so much. There is even more emphasis on how you look."

Fonda said she "felt diminished" growing up because the men in her life were "victims of a [patriarchal] belief system".

Saudi social media users break silence on violence against women

The hashtag #Break_Your_Silence_Speak_Up went viral among Saudi women who started sharing their bitter stories that often go untold.

One woman said that she has been locked up for a year inside the house after her mother learned that her father had raped her over three years. She now needs to be treated for depression as a result of the psychological damage she endured.

Heavy lifting, shift work could harm women's fertility, study shows

The research, published Monday in the journal Occupational and Environmental Medicine, also found that working antisocial hours (in the evenings or night) or rotating shifts, may also impact female fertility.

Though the underlying cause is not known and more research is needed to further verify the findings, the team at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health believes that women in their reproductive years may need to consider this when trying to conceive.

How women photographers see themselves -- and each other

In the 1800s, Julia Margaret Cameron transformed the female figure from muse to active agent within the image. Whilst her photographic career was short lived, she experimented with its potential as a new science to offer faithful records and accurate portraits, but also experimented with photography's narrative possibilities, creating soft focused allegorical images drawn from myths and stories.

Domestic violence: Shelter releases step-by-step guide for women ready to flee abusive relationships

It is frightening advice, but can be the difference between life and death during violent arguments.

A new booklet full of hard won wisdom on how to safely leave abusive relationships is being released in hardcopy and online by Darwin women's shelter, Dawn House.

For a former client of the refuge, Claire (not her real name) the step-by-step plans are exactly what she needed when fleeing her violent former partner.

"I literally ran out of the relationship I was in ... I drove my car out through fences. I left a lot, I lost a lot," Claire said.

Burlesque a confidence boost for north Queensland women of all shapes and ages

"Coming in to this class I feel great, I feel sexy and I don't think a lot of women feel that anymore," said disability worker Jasmine, who signed up to try and improve her body confidence.

"I was very unsure of myself when I first messaged Vivienne. I said 'I'm a bigger girl, I am afraid of all my curves and my bits and pieces'.

"[Performing on stage] has helped me the most with my confidence and it has come through to my everyday life... I am sexy; it doesn't matter what the rest of you think."

Women in the UK are buying five million fewer tampon packs each year

Research from Kantar Worldwide suggests 23.2 million packs were sold in the year ending October 2016.

In the same timeframe in 2012, more than 29.4 million boxes of tampons were bought in the UK.

A million fewer packets of sanitary towels were also sold last year, compared to 2012, with total pack sales of 84.5 million.

In terms of cash, £236m was spent in 2012 on tampons, liners and sanitary towels.

Tampon sales account for £55.6m of that figure.

That compares to £221m in total and £43m on tampons in 2016.