INTRANET

Alex Alvergne

CNRS Research Fellow | Team Leader

My research focuses on the evolutionary ecology of women's health. I use theoretical frameworks from evolutionary biology to understand how female physiological and behavioral traits vary according to environmental, social and cultural contexts.

As a researcher in human evolutionary ecology, I propose an innovative approach to rethinking notions of "normality" and "pathology" (in the sense of Canguilhem, 1943) in the field of women's health. My research shows that many physiological variations, often medicalized as dysfunctions, may in fact be adaptive responses to specific environments.

My recent research focuses on:

  • The impact of vaccination and infection on menstrual cycles
  • Ecological and physiological determinants of contraceptive side effects
  • The role of cultural transmission in the evolution of reproductive norms

I'm currently working on two questions:

  • What are the developmental origins of endometriosis (EnDOHAD)? in collaboration with Montpellier University Hospital (Dr Noémie Ranisavljevic) and Simon Fraser University (Bernard Crespi), funded by the Endometriosis Research Foundation.
  • What are the social-ecological determinants of menstrual health variation in Occitanie (ANR C-HEALTH project) in collaboration with Montpellier University Hospital (Dr Noémie RANISAVLJEVIC).

For more information on my scientific articles, see my Google Scholar page.

Le covid long perturbe les menstruations et inversement

21 octobre 2025
Une nouvelle étude révèle que le Covid long est associé à des perturbations du cycle...
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Long Covid linked to heavier periods and risk of iron deficiency

October 2, 2025
Women with long Covid are prone to longer, heavier periods, which could put them at...
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Long covid may be making your periods longer and heavier / New Scientist 16 sept 2025

October 2, 2025
Long covid seems to disrupt the menstrual cycle, making periods heavier and longer. This may...
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The potential bidirectional relationship between long COVID and menstruation

October 2, 2025
Women have reported menstrual changes after infection with SARS-CoV-2, as well as an increase in...
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Social clustering of preference for female genital mutilation/cutting in south-central Ethiopia

June 13, 2025
Recent estimates indicate that half of Ethiopian girls aged 15 to 19...
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Menstrual cycle length changes following vaccination against influenza alone or with COVID-19

May 16, 2025
Numerous studies have identified an association between vaccination against COVID-19 and...
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Environment more crucial than genes in risk of early death, study suggests

February 20, 2025
A study co-authored by Alex Alvergne...
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Low haemoglobin in arduous seasons is associated with reduced chance of ovulation among women living in the Bolivian altiplano

November 5, 2024
Background and objectives: Female reproductive function responds flexibly to ecological variations...
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First episode of the "My Endo on Waves" series - S01E01: Developmental Origins of Endometriosis (EnDOHAD) with Dr Alexandra Alvergne (CNRS)

July 24, 2024
First episode of the "Mon Endo en Ondes" series, the EndoZen program that explains endometriosis, co-produced...
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38 documents

  • Thomas Cousins, Michelle Pentecost, Alexandra Alvergne, Clare Chandler, Simukai Chigudu, et al.. The changing climates of global health. BMJ Global Health, 2021, 6 (3), pp.e005442. ⟨10.1136/bmjgh-2021-005442⟩. ⟨hal-03447088⟩
  • Alexandra Alvergne, Rose Stevens. Cultural change beyond adoption dynamics: Evolutionary approaches to the discontinuation of contraception. Evolutionary Human Sciences, 2021, 3, pp.e13. ⟨10.1017/ehs.2021.8⟩. ⟨hal-03446860⟩
  • Rose Stevens, Blandine Malbos, Eshetu Gurmu, Jérémie Riou, Alexandra Alvergne. Anaemic women are more at risk of injectable contraceptive discontinuation due to side-effects in Ethiopia. Studies in Family Planning, 2021, ⟨10.1101/2020.10.28.20221523⟩. ⟨hal-03356961v2⟩
  • Sarai Keestra, Vedrana Högqvist Tabor, Alexandra Alvergne. Reinterpreting Patterns of Variation in Human Thyroid Function: An Evolutionary Perspective. Evolution, Medicine, and Public Health, 2021, ⟨10.1093/emph/eoaa043/5970476⟩. ⟨hal-03092084⟩
  • Alexandra Alvergne, Gabriella Kountourides, Austin Argentieri, Lisa Agyen, Natalie Rogers, et al.. COVID-19 vaccination and menstrual cycle changes: A United Kingdom (UK) retrospective case-control study. 2021. ⟨hal-03446967⟩
  • Gemma C Sharp, Abigail Fraser, Gemma Sawyer, Gabriella Kountourides, Kayleigh Easey, et al.. The COVID-19 pandemic and the menstrual cycle: research gaps and opportunities. International Journal of Epidemiology, In press, ⟨10.31219/osf.io/fxygt⟩. ⟨hal-03447218⟩
  • Abigail Fraser, Cathy Johnman, Elise Whitley, Alexandra Alvergne. The evolutionary ecology of age at natural menopause: implications for public health. Evolutionary Human Sciences, 2020, 2, ⟨10.1017/ehs.2020.59⟩. ⟨hal-03092086⟩
  • Frédéric Thomas, Mathieu Giraudeau, François Renaud, Beata Ujvari, Benjamin Roche, et al.. Can postfertile life stages evolve as an anticancer mechanism?. PLoS Biology, 2019, 17 (12), pp.e3000565. ⟨10.1371/journal.pbio.3000565⟩. ⟨hal-02445900⟩
  • Jeremy Koster, Dieter Lukas, David Nolin, Eleanor Power, Alexandra Alvergne, et al.. Kinship ties across the lifespan in human communities. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 2019, 374 (1780), pp.20180069. ⟨10.1098/rstb.2018.0069⟩. ⟨hal-03092099⟩
  • Marina Voinson, Alexandra Alvergne, Sylvain Billiard, Charline Smadi. Stochastic dynamics of an epidemic with recurrent spillovers from an endemic reservoir. Journal of Theoretical Biology, 2018, 457, pp.37 - 50. ⟨10.1016/j.jtbi.2018.08.017⟩. ⟨hal-01882987⟩

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Alex Alvergne

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Specialty Menstrual cycle, Behavioral ecology, Reproductive ecology