Dr. Jen Gunter

Dr. Jennifer Gunter is a Canadian-American gynecologist, pain medicine specialist, and science communicator who has become one of the most prominent medical voices challenging wellness misinformation. A specialist in vulvovaginal disorders, she is board-certified in OB/GYN in both Canada and the United States, and additionally holds certification in pain medicine. She graduated from the University of Manitoba College of Medicine in 1990 and completed her OB/GYN residency at the University of Western Ontario. She writes the Body & Soul column for The New York Times and hosts the TED Audio Collective podcast Body Stuff.

Gunter first gained wide public attention for her detailed medical rebuttals to claims made by Gwyneth Paltrow's wellness brand Goop, earning Goop's description of her as "strangely confident." Her criticisms covered products ranging from vaginal jade eggs (which she warned carried infection risk) to unproven detox regimens, and she has consistently cited peer-reviewed evidence in her takedowns. Her two New York Times instant bestsellers — The Vagina Bible (2019) and The Menopause Manifesto (2021) — represent her effort to reach patients directly with accurate, evidence-based information about women's bodies at a time when misinformation in the wellness industry was proliferating rapidly.

Her Substack newsletter continues her mission of replacing fear-based health content with facts and feminism, covering gynecology, reproductive health, and critical analysis of social media health claims. Gunter is particularly notable for combining clinical expertise with a willingness to engage directly and publicly with misinformation, modeling a form of medical communication that is both rigorous and accessible.