Ellen White's Shocking Statements about Women

Dirk Anderson, last updated May 2025

Mrs. White is lauded by the SDA sect as a pioneering female spiritual leader who inspired generations of other women to get involved in ministry. She wrote many positive and encouraging words about women and their role in the church. However, there is another side to Ellen White's treatment of women that most SDAs are unaware of. In what are described as her "inspired" writings, she makes a number of disparaging, and false statements about women.

Women Are Sicker than Men?

In 1855, Ellen White published a testimony stating:

Infirmities and disease especially affect women.¹

Perhaps some in the SDA sect wondered if this comment was factual or was colored by her own feeble health condition. She cleared that mystery up several years later when she reiterated the statement in the sect's magazine, adding that God had specifically shown her that women were especially prone to disease:

I was shown that infirmities and disease especially affect females.²

The following year, she wrote of the dire state of female health in a letter:

Nearly all females are not well, are not really healthy, but if all should yield to their poor feeling and give up their ambition, lose their power of endurance, what a helpless, useless class of mortals there would be on the earth.³

One great concern of 19th century health reformers was that masturbation would destroy women's health. Some reformers, such as E.P. Miller, whose book on masturbation and marital excess was in Ellen White's personal library, wrote:

In hospitals and lunatic asylums there are more women than men suffering from the effects of this terrible scourge [masturbation].⁴

In 1870, Mrs. White asserted that, "Females possess less vital force than the other sex," and women who indulged in masturbation would reap these terrible results: "The mind is often utterly ruined, and insanity supervenes."⁵ According to this book, when females practice "solitary vice," they exhaust their "vital force" more quickly than men.

In 1871, in the SDA sect's health magazine, she wrote:

There is scarcely a woman that is thoroughly healthy. The majority of women have numerous ailments. Many are troubled with weaknesses of most distressing nature.⁶

Is any of this true? Are women especially prone to disease? Were nearly all women in the 1850s, 1860s, and 1870s unhealthy? Do women have less life force than men?

Scientific Review of Ellen White's Female Weakness Statements

Statement 1: "Infirmities and disease especially affect women."

Scientific Verdict: Inaccurate

While some diseases are more prevalent in women (e.g., autoimmune disorders, depression, osteoporosis), men have higher rates of others (e.g., heart disease at a younger age, most cancers, infectious disease mortality). The idea that women are "especially" affected overall is not supported by epidemiological data.

Statement 2: "I was shown that infirmities and disease especially affect females."

Scientific Verdict: Invalid

Again, this claim is a generalization that does not align with evidence. Disease burden varies by type, age, environment, and socioeconomic status, not by simple sex-based inferiority. Women may experience certain conditions more frequently, but men are more likely to die earlier and from a broader range of causes.

Statement 3: "Nearly all females are not well…if all should yield to their poor feeling…what a helpless, useless class of mortals…"

Scientific Verdict: Inaccurate and Prejudiced

This is medically and sociologically inaccurate and prejudiced. In modern terms, this language is stigmatizing and reflects a gender-biased viewpoint. There is no evidence that the vast majority of women are or were "not well." In fact, modern data shows women live longer than men in nearly every country on earth, suggesting greater biological resilience.

Statement 4: "Females possess less vital force than the other sex."

Scientific Verdict: Baseless

The term vital force is not a scientific concept. It was used in pre-modern medicine and has no basis in current biology or physiology. There is no measurable vital force that women have less of. In fact, in terms of immune system resilience, pain tolerance, and longevity, women often outperform men.

Statement 5: "The mind is often utterly ruined, and insanity supervenes."

Scientific Verdict: Completely Inaccurate and Reprehensible

There is no scientific evidence whatsoever to suggest that masturbation causes women mental illness or "ruins the mind." Mental illnesses are complex conditions influenced by genetics, neurobiology, environmental factors, trauma, and stress. The false link between masturbation and female insanity was a harmful moralistic condemnation, not a medical truth.

Statement 6: "There is scarcely a woman that is thoroughly healthy... many are troubled with weaknesses of most distressing nature."

Scientific Verdict: Gross Deception

This is a gross overstatement, and it reflects outdated assumptions rather than evidence. Modern data does not support the idea that most women are unwell. On the contrary:

• Women have better health-seeking behaviors than men (they go to the doctor more often, seek preventive care).
• Chronic illness burdens differ by sex, but there is no proof that most women are inherently unwell.

Scientific Facts Refute Sister White

Perhaps the greatest evidence against Ellen White's theories of female weakness can be found in female longevity.⁷ Did their proneness to disease and their possession of less vital force cause women to live shorter life spans then men in the 1860s? In the 1860s, many children died from childhood diseases (including two of Ellen White's male children, John Herbert and Henry). Therefore, life expectancy must be calculated after a child reaches adulthood. In 1860, before the Civil War started, if a child survived to age 20, the average life expectancy for a female was 61 years. The average life expectancy for a male was 42 years. That is a 19-year difference! If the woman lived to age 60, her life expectancy was 75 years, which is not much less than today. In terms of life expectancy and mortality, women in the 1860s lived much longer than men. This refutes Mrs. White's assertion that women have less vital force then men. In the 1860s, it appears the opposite was true: women had substantially more so-called vital force than men.

What about disease? Are females especially prone to disease? It is true that women have more auto-immune issues than men, but modern research has shown that the reason for this is that women have stronger immune systems than men. Dr. Kyle Sue, from the Memorial University of Newfoundland, Canada, analyzed studies of respiratory diseases, comparing the genders, and discovered:

...a man's immune system may be naturally weaker than a woman's, and with some illnesses, especially respiratory diseases, men are more susceptible to complications than women. This is because of hormonal differences in the genders. The masculine hormone testosterone suppresses the immune system, while the feminine hormone estradiol is immunoprotective.⁸

A study from Stanford University School of Medicine had similar findings. Researchers found "the female hormone estrogen may strengthen women's immune systems, whereas testosterone—the male equivalent—impairs the body's capacity to fight off viruses."⁹ This lower immunity was demonstrated in the Covid-19 pandemic. In the USA, Italy, Spain, China, South Korea, and the UK, the majority of Covid-19 deaths were male, and by significant margins.¹⁰ Researchers concluded that "women tend to have greater and more robust immune responses" to novel viruses.¹¹ Nature Communications reports that "men are more likely to be sick than women" and "female immune alertness" makes them "less vulnerable to infectious diseases."¹² A large health study of Australians discovered that:¹³

• Men are more likely to get sick from serious health problems than women.
• Men die in greater numbers than women from almost every non-sex-specific health problem.

Thus, modern medical research points in the opposite direction from what Mrs. White wrote. Instead of being more prone to disease, women are actually less prone to infectious diseases than men.

Women Are Spiritually Weaker than Men?

Not only did Ellen White consider women more prone to physical disease, she also considered them more prone to being used by Satan:

Satan chooses women, for he can use them more successfully than he can men.¹⁴

There is no evidence to support this offensive statement. In fact, the most diabolical people in human history have all been men (e.g., Adolf Hitler, Joseph Stalin, Mao Zedong, Pol Pot, Genghis Khan, Nero). Nearly all modern research over the last few decades of women's studies has shown that women are more spiritual than men. For example, a PEW research study in the United States found:¹⁵

• Many more women than men regard their religion as "very important"
• Women are more likely than men to pray daily
• Women are more likely than men to attend religious services

Thus, Ellen White was completely wrong about womens' spirituality.

Women Should Not Vote?

In the nineteenth and early twentieth century, women could not influence the laws of society because they could not vote. Women fought a long and difficult battle to obtain the fundamental right to vote in elections. The first country to grant women the right to vote was New Zealand, in 1893. Australia followed in 1902, Canada in 1917, and the United States in 1919. Oddly enough, Ellen White urged SDA women to avoid getting involved in the reform movement to allow women to vote. In 1864, she wrote:

Those who feel called out to join the movement of Women's Rights, and the so-called Dress Reform, might as well sever all connection with the third angel's message. The spirit which attends the one cannot be in harmony with the other. The Scriptures are plain upon the relations and rights of women and men.¹⁶

It is apparent Ellen White regarded the Scriptures to be contrary to women's rights, although she does not specify which Scriptural principles forbid women's rights. The SDA sect has never produced any Bible verses to support Ellen White's stance against women's rights. In 1872, Mrs. White explained that many women were not intellectually capable of voting appropriately:

There are speculations as to woman's rights and duties in regard to voting. Many are in no way disciplined to understand the bearing of important questions. They have lived lives of present gratification because it was the fashion. Women who might develop good intellects and have true moral worth are now mere slaves to fashion. They have not breadth of thought nor cultivated intellect. They can talk understandingly of the latest fashion, the styles of dress, this or that party or delightful ball. Such women are not prepared to intelligently take a prominent position in political matters. They are mere creatures of fashion and circumstance.¹⁷

This statement is a prime example of the sexist and misogynistic rhetoric commonly used during the 19th century to justify denying women the right to vote and participate in public life. From a modern, informed perspective, it is highly inaccurate, deeply prejudiced, and based on false generalizations.

Mrs. White's statement is a sweeping and unfair generalization. It assumes a lack of discipline and a frivolous nature in many women, implying an inherent incapacity for serious thought. While some individuals (of any gender) may lead lives focused on "present gratification," it was certainly not true for the majority of women, many of whom bore immense responsibilities in managing households, raising children, running farms, or working in industries. It blames women for a supposed lack of "discipline" while ignoring the societal structures that prevented women from accessing higher education, professional careers, or political involvement that might cultivate the very discipline the author claims they lacked.

The statement directly denies women's intellectual capacity and potential. Even in 1872, there were countless women who possessed immense "breadth of thought" and "cultivated intellect." The women's suffrage movement itself was led by highly intelligent, articulate, and strategically brilliant women like Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Lucy Stone, and many others. Women were active in abolition, temperance, social reform, education, and nascent professions. They were authors, thinkers, and activists who certainly understood "important questions."

The limited access to formal education (especially higher education) for women was a societal restriction, not an inherent intellectual failing. To claim women lacked "cultivated intellect" because they were denied the means to cultivate it is circular reasoning and victim-blaming.

Mrs. White's statement about women being "slaves to fashion" is a dismissive trope used to portray women as superficial and incapable of serious thought, effectively trivializing their entire existence. While fashion was (and is) a part of culture, it's reductionist to define women solely by it. Her statement creates a false dichotomy between an interest in social matters (fashion, parties) and the ability to engage in political ones. Interest in one does not preclude capacity for the other. Calling women "mere creatures of fashion and circumstance" strips them of agency, critical thinking, and the capacity for independent decision-making. This aligns with the patriarchal views of the time that sought to keep women in domestic roles and out of the public sphere.

Mrs. White's 1872 statement is a classic example of sexist rhetoric designed to maintain existing power structures. It reflects the prevailing belief that women were intellectually and emotionally suited only for the domestic sphere, and that their participation in politics would be detrimental to both women themselves and society. It relies on:

• Sweeping, unfounded generalizations.
• Patronizing and demeaning language.
• Ignoring systemic barriers that limited women's opportunities.
• Discrediting women's intelligence and capabilities to justify their disenfranchisement.

From a contemporary perspective, backed by over a century of women's demonstrated capabilities in all fields, the statement is grossly inaccurate. It is a biased and historically contingent opinion that has been thoroughly disproven.

When Mrs. Graves met with Ellen White in 1874, she implored Mrs. White to get engaged in Women's Suffrage, but Mrs. White took no action.¹⁸ In 1878, Mrs. White wrote in the sect's paper:

I do not recommend that woman should become a voter or an office-holder...¹⁹

To reiterate the importance of this "inspired" statement, it was reprinted in SDA publications in 1886 and 1892. Finally, in 1898, she urged the SDA people to not advocate for women's rights:

Whatever the opinions you may entertain in regard to casting your vote in political questions, you are not to proclaim it by pen or voice. Our people need to be silent upon questions which have no relation to the third angel’s message. If ever a people needed to draw nigh to God, it is Seventh-day Adventists. There have been wonderful devices and plans made. A burning desire has taken hold of men or women to proclaim something, or bind up with something; they do not know what. But the silence of Christ upon many subjects was true eloquence.²⁰

Fortunately, many godly women ignored this ill-advised counsel and fought for justice for women. Today, SDA women can vote in many countries because non-SDA women fought for their right to vote. Thank God for them!

Women with Slim Waists Are Defective

In 1871, Mrs. White, who was well-known for her large waist, wrote:

Some women have naturally small waists. But rather than regard such forms as beautiful, they should be viewed as defective.²¹

Having a naturally small waist is not a defect. It is a normal variant of human anatomy, just as broader or narrower hips, longer legs, or different facial features are. There is no medical or scientific basis to label a naturally small waist as "defective." The word "defective" implies a pathological condition, which a naturally small waist is not. While Ellen White rightly condemned the wearing of corsets, she wrongly pathologizes the natural anatomy of some women. Labeling a naturally occurring trait as "defective" contributes to unrealistic and harmful body standards. Such statements are patently offensive and can contribute to body image issues, especially among young women.

The truth is that a naturally small waist is not a health defect. It does not reduce a woman's worth, value, or capability. It is part of normal human diversity.

Conclusion

In order to judge whether Ellen White was truly inspired by God in her writings, it is important to consider all the facts, not just the ones that paint a rosy picture of Mrs. White. Compare Mrs. White's writings with the facts:

Far from being inspired, Mrs. White's statements about women are offensive, contradictory to known scientific facts, and history has shown them to be badly misguided.

Citations

1. Ellen White, Testimonies vol. 1 (1855), 306.

2. Ellen White, Review and Herald, April 22, 1862.

3. Ellen White, Letter 13, 1863 (1Ltms). Released by the White Estate in 2014.

4. E.P. Miller, A Treatise on the Cause of Exhausted Vitality; Or, Abuses of the Sexual Function (Boston: E.P. Woodward and Co., 1867), 45.

5. Ellen White, A Solemn Appeal (1870), 73. Statement first appeared in Appeal to Mothers (1864), 27.

6. Ellen White, Health Reformer Nov. 1, 1871.

7. All United States life expectancy statistics are from the University of Oregon, extracted July 13, 2022, https://mappinghistory.uoregon.edu/english/US/US39-01.html.

8. Alexa Lardieri, "Man Flu May Be Real, Study Shows: New research suggests a difference in immune systems between men and women as the reason men claim to get sicker. ", US News and World Report, Dec. 12, 2017, https://www.usnews.com/news/health-care-news/articles/2017-12-12/man-flu-may-be-real-study-shows. See also "The science behind man flu," BMJ 2017;359:j5560 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.j5560, December 11, 2017.

9. Kelly O'Sullivan, "A new study shows that men actually do get sicker than women," Insider, June 7, 2016, https://www.insider.com/a-new-study-shows-that-men-get-sicker-than-women-2016-6.

10. George M. Bwire, "Coronavirus: Why Men are More Vulnerable to Covid-19 Than Women?", June 4, 2020, doi: 10.1007/s42399-020-00341-w, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7271824/.

11. Nell Greenfieldboyce, "THE CORONAVIRUS CRISIS: The New Coronavirus Appears to Take A Greater Toll On Men Than On Women," April 10, 2020, https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2020/04/10/831883664/the-new-coronavirus-appears-to-take-a-greater-toll-on-men-than-on-women#:~:text=One%20large%20study%20of%2044%2C672,with%20only%201.7%25%20for%20women. Quote from the article:

Men seem harder hit by the [COVID-19] virus than women and are more likely to have severe illness or die. ... One large study of 44,672 confirmed COVID-19 cases done by the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention...found that the fatality rate was 2.8% for men compared with only 1.7% for women. In Italy, one study of 1,591 cases of critically ill people who were admitted into intensive care units showed that about 82% of them were men. ... And a study of people hospitalized in the U.S. for COVID-19...found that "males may be disproportionately affected by COVID-19 compared with females." ... New York...city's department of health reports about 39 female deaths per 100,000 people and 71 male deaths per 100,000 people.

12. Aaron Reich, "Why are men more prone to illness than women?" Nature Communications, October 12, 2019, https://www.jpost.com/health-science/why-are-men-more-prone-to-illness-than-women-604309.

13. "Men's Health", https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/health/conditionsandtreatments/mens-health, extracted July 12, 2022.

14. Ellen White, Manuscript 29, 1911, 13 (10MR 76.2). Released by the Ellen White Estate in 1980.

15. "The Gender Gap in Religion Around the World: Women are generally more religious than men, particularly among Christians," Pew Research Center, March 22, 2016. https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/2016/03/22/the-gender-gap-in-religion-around-the-world/. Quote from the article:

In the United States, for example, women are more likely than men to say religion is “very important” in their lives (60% vs. 47%) , according to a 2014 Pew Research Center survey. American women also are more likely than American men to say they pray daily (64% vs. 47%) and attend religious services at least once a week (40% vs. 32%).

16. Ellen White, Testimony for the Church #10, (1864), 30.

17. Ellen White, Testimonies vol. 3 (1872), 565.

18. Ellen White to James White, July 10, 1874, Letter 40a, 1874.

19. Ellen White, Review and Herald, Dec. 19, 1878. See also Signs of the Times, Sep. 16, 1886, and Gospel Workers (1892).

20. Ellen White to "Brethren", February 20, 1898, Letter 4, 1898.

21. Ellen White, Health Reformer, Nov. 1, 1871. The same quote appears in the Oct. 1 edition of Health Reformer.