Reflecting on European Hormone Day #BecauseHormonesMatter
European Hormone Day 2023 took place on 15 May 2023 during the European Congress of Endocrinology in Istanbul. This was the second dedicated hormone awareness day organised by the European Society of Endocrinology (ESE) and the European Hormone and Metabolism Foundation (ESE Foundation). You can see some photos from the Day here and search #BecauseHormonesMatter and #EuropeanHormoneDay on social media to follow the action!
While there is a general understanding of what hormones are, many people in Europe and beyond do not fully understand their function and importance in preventing and treating disease. European Hormone Day aims to change that by sharing information and starting conversations. To support this, we published a public-facing annex to the Milano Declaration, with 10 Recommendations for Good Hormone Health. This provides simple actions each of us can take to ensure better hormone health.
A better understanding of why hormones matter also means we can achieve better European and national health policies – and that means better research, better diagnosis and treatment, and ultimately better health for all. The four key themes for the day were again based on ESE’s 2021 White Paper: Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals (EDCs), Cancer, Obesity and Rare Endocrine Diseases. ESE’s main policy and advocacy theme for the day was endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs), in light of the ongoing debate around EDCs at the EU level, which may determine policies and legislation for years to come.
Looking ahead, we’d like to continue the momentum from European Hormone Day and encourage the community to join forces and support the many other European or global awareness initiatives with links to endocrinology. To this end, ESE and the ESE Foundation, with support from affiliated Patient Awareness Groups, has published “Because Hormones Matter,” a leaflet of awareness-raising initiatives to help the endocrine community combine efforts over the coming year. This includes a printable calendar of upcoming endocrine-related events and campaigns that we can all lend our voices to.