INDIA – Veera Health, a digital health platform for women, has raised US$3 million in a funding round co-led by Sequoia Capital India’s Surge and Global Founders Capital, along with the participation of Y Combinator, CloudNine Hospitals’ co-founder Rohit M.A. and Tinder India head Taru Kapoor.
The funding will be used to scale the business and grow teams across engineering, product and operations.
Veera is part of the fifth cohort of Surge, which is Sequoia Capital India’s scale-up programme for startups in India and Southeast Asia.
The company was founded in August 2020 by two sisters Shobhita and Shashwata Narain, as a digital therapeutics platform that helps women identify and navigate Polycystic Ovary Syndrome. They also support in nutrition therapy, lifestyle coaching and consultation.
Veera Health offers a subscription-based programme that provides a customized treatment plan, administered by a team of doctors specializing in PCOS including gynecologists, nutritionists, dermatologists and mental health experts.
“Indian women are ready for a modern, high-quality healthcare experience. PCOS is a massive need—it’s a lifelong condition that seriously impacts quality of life for millions of women around the world. Our vision is to start with PCOS and continue to expand to more women’s health conditions,” CEO Shashwata Narain said. “Being part of the target market ourselves, we understand the issues better than anyone else and are excited to build something that we can ourselves use in our lifetime.”
About Polycystic ovary syndrome
Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a condition in which the ovaries produce an abnormal number of androgens, male sex hormones that are usually present in women in small amounts.
The name polycystic ovary syndrome describes the numerous small cysts (fluid-filled sacs) that form in the ovaries. However, some women with this disorder do not have cysts, while some women without the disorder do develop cysts.
Ovulation occurs when a mature egg is released from an ovary. This happens so it can be fertilized by a male sperm. If the egg is not fertilized, it is sent out of the body during your period.
In some cases, a woman doesn’t make enough of the hormones needed to ovulate. When ovulation doesn’t happen, the ovaries can develop many small cysts.
These cysts make hormones called androgens. Women with PCOS often have high levels of androgens and this can cause more problems with a woman’s menstrual cycle causing many of the symptoms of PCOS.
Unfortunately, PCOS often goes untreated and up to 70% of women do not get the right treatment until it is too late.
Women as young as 25 years of age can develop obesity, diabetes and infertility if they don’t get the right treatment hence the time to start making changes is now.
The main treatment options for women in India are grouped into both alternative medicine and morden medicine that is backed by scientific facts.
For modern medicine, there is allopathy and lifestyle -based natural changes where as for alternative medicine there is the option of homeopathy, Ayurveda and herbal supplements.
