Source:
E-mail dt. 7 March 2015
Women health in India
K. Praveena
Lecturer,
Department of Economics,
Thiagarajar College, Madurai – 09. Tamilnadu, India.
Introduction
The
origin of the Indian idea of appropriate female behaviour
can be traced to Manu in 200 BC: “by a young girl, by a young woman, or even
by an aged one, nothing must be done independent, even in her own house”. Women's
health refers to health issues specific to female anatomy.
Women's health issues include menstruation, contraception, maternal health,
child birth, menopause and breast cancer.
They can also include medical situations in which women face problems not
directly related to their biology, for example gender-differentiated access to
medical treatment. Women's health is an
issue which has been taken up by many feminists,
especially where reproductive health is concerned. Women's health is
positioned within a wider body of knowledge cited by, amongst others, the World Health Organization, which places importance on gender as
a social determinant of health.
The
health of Indian women is intrinsically linked to their status in society.
There is a strong son preference in India, as sons are expected to care for
parents as they age. This son preference, along with high dowry costs for daughters,
sometimes results in the mistreatment of daughters. Further, Indian women have
low levels of both education and formal labor force participation. They
typically have little autonomy, living under the control of first their
fathers, then their husbands, and finally their sons. Poor health has
repercussions not only for women but also their families. Women in poor health
are more likely to give birth to low weight infants. They also are less likely
to be able to provide food and adequate care for their children. Finally, a
woman’s health affects the household economic well-being, as a woman in poor
health will be less productive in the labor force.
Gender Bias based Health Concerns in India
Government
of India’s National Rural Health Mission aims at correcting rural inequities in
the matter of health. It seeks to integrate health with sanitation, hygiene,
safe drinking water and nutrition. Like most of the schemes and programmes initiated by Government, even the NRHM also has failed
to achieve the goals at the implementation level, with the primary health centres and sub-centres crumbling. Women from infant stage to their old age
women get an unfair deal in the matter of health. Their health concerns receive
a low priority resulting in women bearing pain and discomfort in silence for
long periods of time without seeking relief. The sex ratio in India speaks
volumes about the neglect. It is not just the poor who for want of resources
and with the inherent preference for a boy are guilty of bias. Even in well-to-do
families parents tend to spend more on the health-care of boys than on girls.
Socio-Demographic status of Women
The ratio of
female to male population in India has been low. As per Census data, sex ratio
of women to per thousand men is as given below:
Sex Ratio of Women to per Thousand Men
Year |
Sex Ratio |
1901 |
972 |
1911 |
964 |
1921 |
955 |
1931 |
950 |
1941 |
945 |
1951 |
946 |
1961 |
941 |
1971 |
930 |
1981 |
934 |
1991 |
927 |
2001 |
933 |
2011 |
940 |
Source: Census of
India, 2011.
In
the beginning of 20th century sex ratio was 972 and thereafter is recorded a
sharply declining trend. The lowest sex ratio was in 1991 when it was only 927
females on per 1000 males. It may be explained into socio-cultural factors and
the pre-natal sex determination. In the
beginning of 1901 sex ratio was at the level of 972 on per thousand males.
Later on it moral towards downward and it reached at 964 in 1911, 955 in 1921,
950 in 1931 and 945 in 1941. It may be observed that sex ratio was in declining
trend cheering the above table. The possible factors are marital status poverty
etc. However, we faced both world wars, in which a no. of soldiers not only get
died but also made migration from here but still then we see its graph towards down
trend.
The
data shows that in 1951 the sex ratio made slightly the attitude by one point
and it reaches at 946 in comparison to 945 in 1941. But it could not stay
itself in this trend slipped down by 946 to 930 in 1971. Later the census year
1981 data recorded a positive trend but it could not stay in the same trend and
slipped down again at 927 in 1991. During 1981-2001 and aware-ness our society
recorded a change in thinking of common people which may be reflected in the
increasing trend of sex ratio i.e. 933 in 2000.
Women Health in India
Health
is complex and dependent on a host of factors. The dynamic interplay of social
and environmental factors has profound and multifaceted implications on health.
Women’s lived experiences as gendered beings result in multiple and, significantly,
interrelated health needs. But gender identities are played out from various
location positions like caste and class. The multiple burdens of ‘production
and reproduction’ borne from a position of disadvantage has telling
consequences on women’s well-being.
The health
of women depends
on their emotional, social and physical well-being which are
determined by different
social, political and economic contexts of their lives. India
being large country,
has a diverse population- socially,
culturally and economically; yet,
the common major problem
that women here
face in availing healthcare, is inequality,
between men and women;
among women of
different geographical
regions, social classes
and indigenous and ethnic
groups across the country.
There are
several factors responsible for the
current status of
women, one is the
culture
itself. Women are subjected to
selective malnourishment from birth. There is strong preference for the male
child in several states promoting illegal sex determination and female foeticide. This not only poses threat to the expectant
mother’s physical and
mental health but also
imbalances the sex
ratio, thereby giving rise
to several other
social problems.
Indian women and nutrition
Malnutrition is defined as a health condition caused by
lack of proper nutrition and well-balanced diet. Human body requires a mix
blend of proteins, vitamins, minerals, and fatty acids in an appropriate ratio
to ensure proper and smooth functioning of all the human systems. If this
requirement is not met, the person suffers from variety of diseases and ill
health. The problem of malnutrition and lack of food intake is more reported
with girls and women of the society. Girls belonging to the lower middle class
or those below the poverty line suffer the most when it comes to fulfill the
demand of adequate nutrition. In the poor families the income is limited that
is not even sufficient to fulfill the basic needs of life. Whatever such
families have in terms of income and nutrition is given to the male siblings
without any consideration to the health of the girls.
It is a
known fact that women are more prone to nutritional deficiency because of the
kind of reproductive cycle they have and because of the extra amount of
household work they perform. The work pattern and the pressure on them demands
for more food but sadly their basic need is not met. Adolescent girls grow at a
faster rate and they need good amount of proteins, vitamins, and calcium to
ensure healthy growth and development. Improper food makes them weak and can
become the cause of various diseases like anemia, weak immunity,
hypothyroidism, goiter, blindness, and even death. Pregnant women also needs
more of nutrition as they have to bring up themselves in a healthy manner along
with providing good nutrition to a new life developing in their womb. In such
cases low food intake and lack of nutrition rebounds on the society by causing
major health issues to the offspring be it a girl or a boy. Low birth weight is
a common problem noticed with mothers having improper diet. This further leads
to cognitive impairment, developmental problems, and can even be a cause of
infant deaths.
Malnourished
women also put an impact on the national economy as lack of nutrition greatly
reduces the ability of women to work, and strength of women to endure
sufferings. In all ways it is greatly affecting the productivity of women. It
affects both physical and emotional health of women that eventually leads to
economic losses both for the family and the country. The unfortunate part is
that despite of the continuous progress and growth of the country’s economy,
women are still living a life full of misery and pain. Researches and reports
have dictated that in the recent years the per capita food consumption rates in
the country have drastically increased but even then women are not able to get
sufficient nutrition. With malnutrition amongst women, the society is facing a
tough time. There should be initiatives and actions taken against the issue to
ensure that even women can enjoy the right to adequate nutrition and live a
healthy life. Think from the other end of the spectrum that if women of the
society will get good food to eat and stay healthy then eventually they’ll be
able to serve more, love more, and live more.
Conclusion
Women’s
empowerment is hindered by limited autonomy in many areas that has a strong
bearing on development. Their institutionalized incapacity owing to low levels
of literacy, limited exposure to mass media and access to money and restricted
mobility results in limited areas of competence and control (for instance,
cooking). The family is the primary, if not the only locus for them. However,
even in the household domain, women’s participation is highly gendered.
Nationally, about half the women (51.6%) are involved in decision making on
their healthcare. Women’s widespread ignorance about matters related to their
health poses a serious impediment to their well-being. The NFHS-2, for example,
reports that out of the total births where no antenatal care was sought during pregnancy,
in 60 percent of the cases women felt it was ‘not necessary’. And, at a time
when AIDS is believed to have assumed pandemic proportions in the country, 60
percent of the ever married women have never heard of the disease. Women’s inferior
status thus has deleterious effects on their health and limits their access to
healthcare.
References
1.
World Health Organization, 1996, “Revised
1990 Estimates of Maternal Mortality: A New Approach by WHO and UNICEF,”
WHO/FRH/ MSM/96.11, Geneva.
2. Duggal
R., Health and nutrition in Maharashtra. In Government of Maharashtra (2002). Human
Development Report: Maharashtra, New Delhi: Oxford University Press, 53-77 (2002)
3.
http://www.iapsmgc.org/index_pdf/102.pdf
4.
https://www.census.gov/population/international/files/wid-9803.pdf