Welcome to Labfront's Women's Health Startup Series, where we delve into the stories behind women-led companies shaping the future of women's health. In this edition, we have the privilege of speaking with Emilie Faure, the founder of Juniver, an evidence-based recovery program for eating disorders. Emilie shares her personal story and explains how Juniver is challenging the status quo and offering new avenues for eating disorder recovery with its roots in neuroscience and addiction.

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Striking the right balance between open-mindedness and conviction is a skill that gets honed as you progress through your career, and it’s particularly important in a field where there is a lack of data, and a lot of bias.

Can you tell us about your background and how it led you to start your company?

I’m a generalist – I’ve worked in sales, strategy, and consulting – and borderless, having lived and worked on three continents. And, like 30M Americans, I spent years battling an eating disorder and couldn’t access effective care. The ‘gold standard’ treatment, cognitive behavioral therapy, is only 28% effective for eating disorders.

I was eventually lucky enough to recover, but when Covid hit and we were starting to see an eating disorder epidemic emerge within the pandemic and, simultaneously, our lives move online, I started thinking about what a digital solution for eating disorders could look like.

I brought together a panel of leading experts and we conducted research with hundreds of participants. What we found is that all eating disorders are characterized by urges, and that moment of experiencing an urge is both when people most want and help, and also the moment that is the biggest long-term lever of recovery. Because overcoming urges when they present lowers the intensity and frequency of future urges, paving the way to recovery. In-the-moment intervention for urges became the foundation of Juniver’s care model.

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Can you share any success stories or the positive impact your product or services have had on women's health so far?

We ran a pilot to test an early version of Juniver with 100 people, and got very strong efficacy results – 92% of people who tried our tools overcame urges. What was particularly gratifying was getting feedback from users. They were very excited about about help that was flexible and on-demand, that didn’t require them to uproot their life for treatment. They felt empowered and hopeful.

And on the back of this, we were awarded an Innovate UK trial to fund a clinical trial which kicks off in September.

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What is the biggest misconception about your work, business, or the space you operate in?

There's a common misconception that eating disorders affect primarily young white women, and manifest as anorexia. In fact, anorexia is only 6% of all eating disorders. Part of what we want to achieve with Juniver is a large data set to uncover how eating disorders present in different populations, and how to personalize treatment to improve outcomes for everyone.

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Can you explain the scientific underpinnings of your product or service? 

Juniver is rooted in neuroscience, specifically the neuroscience of addiction. The core premise is that by overcoming urges when they arise, these decrease over time until they disappear entirely. While lasting recovery requires a holistic approach, the in-the-moment support through a digital intervention is what sets us apart from traditional therapy. Equally, the flexibility of our solution means it can augment existing care modalities, supporting, for example, patients who are discharged from residential or out-patient treatment.

The core premise is that by overcoming urges when they arise, these decrease over time until they disappear entirely.

What role do you see for technology in digital health and improving women's health outcomes?

Women's health is such an under-researched and underfunded field. Women were excluded from clinical trials until the 1990’s because the hormonal changes across their cycle introduced variability in the results that made them harder to interpret.

This FDA policy led to a significant gender gap in healthcare – we literally know less about every aspect of female bodies compared to male bodies.

There’s a big opportunity for digital solutions to contribute, through data, to better knowledge, medical needs, and treatments for conditions that mainly or exclusively affect women.

It’s crucial that more funding go towards women's health, from research funding to venture capital.

How do you envision the future of women's health research and innovation? What role do you see for your organization in shaping this future?

We’re witnessing a surge of innovation around women's health, which is promising, but there’s still a lot of work ahead. With Juniver, we want to radically change not only the way eating disorder care is accessed and delivered, but the conversation around eating disorders. We know that early treatment is a big factor in recovery outcomes, and it’s all the more important we work together to remove the shame and stigma around the issue to empower young people to recognize their symptoms and seek help when they need it.

To shape this future, it’s crucial that more funding go towards women's health, from research funding to venture capital.

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What is the biggest thing you've learned in your work that you'd like others interested in pursuing careers in women's health leadership to know?

Stay curious and be determined. Striking the right balance between open-mindedness and conviction is a skill that gets honed as you progress through your career, and it’s particularly important in a field where there is a lack of data, and a lot of bias. Learn fast, focus on the goals that matter, and find people who will champion what you do through the ups and downs.

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Juniver’s innovative care model is positioned to transform the $66bn US & EU eating disorder market through a first-of-its-kind digital solution with micro-interventions for urges, evidence-based education, personalized tools, peer support, and telemedicine care.

Join Juniver on their journey as they continue to empower individuals, challenge misconceptions, and create a world where eating disorder recovery is prioritized and understood. They’re currently hiring - learn how you can take part in their vision and help make an impact that will change lives.

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Eating Disorder Statistics

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