Journal of Gynaecology | Lupine Publishers
Abstract
Keywords: Girl Child; Human Ecological System; Health, Social; Economic and Cultural Development
Introduction
Despite of economic growth in India, India’s hunger is still worse than North Korea or Sudan. And a child raised in India is more likely to be malnourished than Somalia. Worst situation is in tribal dominated states such as Bihar, Orissa, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh. An all-round development be needed to fight against malnutrition. Approximately 620 million people in India did not have a toilet in their house and they use public toilet or just outside. Recently, in year 2016, Modi Government has started Swachh Bharart Abhiyan, Beti Bachao and Beti Paradho Abhiyan. Both sanitation and malnutrition are serious problems of Suburban and rural areas. Hence, present government has given due consideration to find quick solutions of health and sanitation problem and providing special attention to solve the problem of girl child and women. All four issues health, social, economic and cultural development have been decided by keeping the women health in centre. Problem of sanitation and malnutrition are not due to lack of economic problems, but social sectarianism and education are main factors. In 2012, UNICEF made a report that malnutrition is based entirely on lack of the food. But now, UNICEF and many charitable organizations are saying that poor sanitation is one of the biggest reasons of malnutrition. Currently, the India government is working to solve malnutrition problem by making more foods. There is no detailed report available on women population affected ith communicable diseases and noncommunicable diseases at global level. There is a rising trend of life style diseases in urban women due to non-functionality in rich society. Two trends in human population i.e. under nourished and over nourished are prevailing and both are harmful for society. There are three contributing factors poverty, malnutrition, and sanitation which are responsible for ill health. Lack of education is responsible for very low socio, economic and cultural development in country with majority of the population is living at or below the poverty line. Even after existence of all negative factors, fertility rate in low economic group is very high, with low socialization and cultural following. This signifies need of controlling factors such as family planning and generation of livelihood means to fight against hunger and poverty existing in sphere of women in society by excluding religious and social factors. Some of the major causes for malnutrition in India are economic inequality that can be finished only by making and implementing new education and housing policy, law for work and wages, legal system to provide equal rights to share resources, income, economy and development of a selfsustained self-governing system (Figure 1).
Issues Related to Women and Child Health
Micronutrients improve the health of mothers, protect their reproductive age, and provide strength to pregnant women to support growth and development of unborn children. These are not only required for the survival of the child but also assist in physical and mental development of children up to five years old. Folic acid supplementation, iodized salt, vitamin D, and A, iron and protein are main dietary requirements of pregnant women. After iron, vitamin A deficiency also prevails at global level as one in three preschool-aged children and one in six pregnant women are deficient in vitamin A due to inadequate dietary intake (1995–2005 data). Global evidence indicates that in regions where vitamin A deficiency is prevalent, vitamin A supplementation can reduce child mortality by an average 23 per cent. Vitamin A is necessary to support the response of the body’s immune system, and children who are deficient face a higher risk of dying from infectious diseases such as measles and diarrhea. Child and mother both need nutritive food during pregnancy and before pregnancy. It could make available by providing supplementary foods under the integrated child development services scheme. Due to lifelong malnourishment women always have low blood pressure. Woman of the house is usually the last one to eat the food. And many a times she is left with the smallest portion of food.
In poor countries women are at high socio-demographic risk for preterm birth [3]. This is due to early age marriages of young girls, it severely affect their maternal health. Young age mothers have more burdens to give birth to their child but they have no affordable means available for effectively managing maternity. Condition is so worst that they have no budget to buy sanitary napkins and safety pads to manage their menstrual flow. They are looking for government help for seeking maternal health care, antenatal care, institutional birth, and cesarean safe delivery. There is a load of repeated pregnancies that creates great problem of anemia. It results in birth infant deaths; hence, there should be long term strategies to end preventable maternal deaths. There is a need to ensuring marriage at/after legal age of 18 through awareness and ensuring a girl completes secondary education. It is a fact that young mothers, who are lacking good diet and intake low calorie food, face the incidence of low birth weight (LBW) of child. A third of women of reproductive age in India are undernourished with a body mass index (BMI) of less than 18.5kg/m2. Thus, both child and mother are affected due to malnutrition.
In economic sections of society there are two problems either under-nutrition or over-nutrition, both are due to unequal distribution of resources. One is responsible for low birth weight in infants, while second overweight, both situations are avoidable and need micro discrepancies in public supply. It was hard truth up to 1991 that more than one third of the world’s malnourished children live in India but in last fifteen years a significant improvement has been done not even in case of child and women but in other sections of society. The prevalence of underweight children in India is among the highest in the world and is nearly double that of Sub-Saharan Africa with dire consequences for mobility, mortality, productivity and economic growth [3,4]. Some of the major causes for malnutrition in India are Economic inequality. Due to the low social status of some population groups, their diet often lacks in both quality and quantity. Women who suffer malnutrition are less likely to have healthy babies. In India, mothers generally lack proper knowledge in feeding children. Consequently, new born infants are unable to get adequate amount of nutrition from their mothers.
According to Global Hunger Index 2017, India ranked 97th out of 118 countries. Though India is one of the fastest growing countries in terms of population and economics, sitting at a population of 1.342 billion and growing at 1.5%–1.7% annually (from 2001–2007) [5,6]. India’s Gross Domestic Product growth was 9.0% from 2007 to 2008; since Independence in 1947, its economic status has been classified as a low-income country with majority of the population at or below the poverty line [7]. Now in recent report it conditions in poverty alleviation has been improved from 67 to 35% in rural areas. Due to prevalence of poverty in geographically poor remote areas, there is delineation of people from national development. Its main causes are low education, forced child labor, and prevalence of child marriage. Population living below the National Poverty Line is in need of civic amenities, education, and employment for their economic development. It needs new policies on work force, wages, resource utilization and sharing of cost, and enhancement of rural productivity by supporting agriculture micro-industry sector.
Deficiencies in nutrition cause long-term damage to both individuals and society. Compared with their better-fed peers, nutrition-deficient individuals are more prone to infectious diseases such as pneumonia tuberculosis and other communicable diseases that results in higher mortality rate. In addition, nutritiondeficient individuals are less productive at work. Malnutrition during pregnancy causes the child to have increased risk of future diseases, physical retardation, and reduced cognitive abilities. It is very clear that low income groups show low productivity, that is not only gives them low pay but traps them in a vicious circle of undernutrition [8]. It also brings inefficiency to the society, especially in India where labor is a major input factor for economic production [9]. On the other hand, over-nutrition also has severe consequences such as obesity, cardiovascular, blood pressure and stroke. Obesity causes several non- communicable such as cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, cancers and chronic respiratory diseases. In India national obesity rates in 2010 were 14% for women and 18% for men with some urban areas having rates as high as 40% [10]. Based on employment and wages two groups of malnutrition undernutrition and over-nutrition has been emerged [11]. Many factors, including region, religion and caste affect the nutritional status of Indians. Living in rural areas also contributes to nutritional status.
First partnership has been established with the “Aaajevika” program of the India government’s National Rural Livelihood Mission to test whether women’s nutrition initiatives can be mainstreamed through women’s empowerment platforms under “Aaajevika”. Secondly, UNICEF in Andhra Pradesh and Telengana is technically supporting the state government to implement the One full meal scheme. The programme aims to improve the nutrient intake of pregnant women and breastfeeding mothers and reduce the prevalence and severity of maternal anemia. In Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, 5100 women federations, supported by Aajeevika and UNICEF, partner with State Governments to provide 895,000 pregnant and lactating mothers nutritious meals daily through ‘ONE FULL MEAL’ scheme, located in villages where under nutrition rates are high. One Full Meal entitles pregnant women and breastfeeding mothers to receive a free nutritious meal every day between 11am and 2pm at the village Anganwadi centre, 25 days a month. Each ICDS project gives a quarterly grant to the federations that are involved in the implementation of the programme. There must be a long-term program for mitigation of nutritional deficiency in women.
For management of health of economically poor women international agencies and civil society, government and local bodies should come forward to find timely solutions of problems related to gynecological, obstetrics, and maternal health. Women need full care and support starting from time of conception till childbirth, ensuring them to provide pre-natal care, management of pregnancy, and post-partum care. The menopause is a physiological event involving ovarian failure as a result of a loss of ovarian follicular activity, which leads to oestrogen deficiency, resulting in permanent cessation of menstruation and loss of reproductive function. Women become hormonal deficient (oestrogen deficiency) very easily. Efforts should be made to lower down avoidable risks for women and infants, including preterm birth, cardiometabolic risk factors, including waist circumference (WC), blood pressure, cholesterol level, and presence of type 2 diabetes. There should be an arrangement of nutritional food for adolescent girls who begin childbearing. It is well known that an undernourished mother inevitably gives birth to an undernourished baby, perpetuating an intergenerational cycle of under-nutrition. And all these deficiencies passed on to their children, and effect health of both child and mother.
Awareness programs be launched to tell about safe use of contraceptives among all women including poor women both in urban and rural areas for control of child birth [12] (Figure 2). They should be abiding the benefits of one or two child policy. Awareness programs on women health can make significant change in nutritional behavior and reduce health related problems. Preterm birth is a disease of multi-factorial etiologies that has environmental, social, and maternal health components. However, for successful pregnancy outcome antenatal nutritional counseling is required for young mothers. Furthermore, enhancing nutritional support can ensure adequate weight gain during pregnancy may provide additional benefits especially for women with a history of child marriage. Long term effect of counseling will also assist in infant and young child feeding (IYCF) practice. Of total 1-2% of infants born preterm (<32 weeks of gestation) and have low birth weight (<1500 g) need adequate nutrition to ensure good health, growth and development. This category of infants’ needs incremental milk feeding that can provide them vitamins, minerals, proteins, carbohydrates and lipids. No additional resources will require implementing an optimal feeding strategy.
Issues Related to Social Well Being of Women
Traditional knowledge and practice of Indigenous Peoples related to their food use and well-being is a wealth of information for academic study and for public health nutrition. Despite unique long-evolved heritages of knowledge of ecosystem resources, Indigenous Peoples comprise 15% of the global poor, but only 5% of the world’s population, and they experience poverty, discrimination, and poor nutritional health at far greater rates than mainstream populations in their nations of residence [13]. Perinatal mental health is considered an important public health issue with health policy internationally identifying the importance of psychological support for women in the perinatal period. Midwives and primary care nurses are ideally positioned to detect mental distress early. There should be a fight against hunger and poverty existing in sphere of women in society (Figure 3). The government of India started a program called Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) in 1975. ICDS has been instrumental in improving the health of mothers and children under age 6 by providing health and nutrition education, health services, supplementary food, and pre-school education. The ICDS program is one of the largest in the world. It reaches more than 34 million children ages 0–6 years and 7 million pregnant and lactating mothers. Other programs impacting under-nutrition include the National Midday Meal Scheme, the National Rural Health Mission, and the Public distribution system. The challenge for these programs and schemes is how to increase efficiency, impact, and coverage. India is a signatory to the 27 survival and development goals lay down by the World Summit on children 1990.
In India National Rural Health Mission is working for rural people working with the goal to “improve the availability of and access to quality health care by people, especially for those residing in rural areas, the poor, women, and children. It has included the objectives to reduce infant mortality rate, launching public health services, prevention of communicable and non-communicable diseases mainly endemic disease like JE. It also kept attention to provide universal access to public health services, create population stabilization, as well as gender and demographic balance, revitalize local health traditions and mainstream and finally, to promote healthy life styles. Traditionally, UNICEF has been supporting India in a number of sectors like child development, women’s development, urban basic services, support for community based convergent services, health, education, nutrition, water & sanitation, childhood disability, children in especially difficult circumstances, information and communication, planning and program support. The Indian government started midday meal scheme on 15 August 1995. It serves millions of children with fresh cooked meals in almost all the government run schools or schools aided by the government fund.
ISKCON Food Relief Foundation run Annamrita, and Food for Life and Akashya patra Foundation are the world’s largest NGO which are running midday meal programs. The meals served by Food for Life Annamrita and Akshaya Patra complies with the nutritional norms given by the government of India and aims to eradicate malnutrition among children in India. Each of them are serving freshly cooked plant-based meals to over 1.3 million school children in government and government-aided schools in India. These programmes are conducted with part subsidies from the government and partly with donations from individuals and corporations. Food for Life Annamrita is the premier affiliate of Food for Life Global the world’s largest free food relief network, with projects in over 60 countries [14]. In order to implement these goals, the Department of Women & Child Development has formulated a National Plan of Action on Children. Kuposhan Mukta Bharat by Ministry of Social Welfare
Issues Related to Economic Well Being of Women
Child marriage is a central stage issue that directly influences education, health, cultural, social and economic development of girl child. It is main obstacle to economic prosperity and development. It is a health hazard and barrier to girl child education. Child marriage is estimated to cost economies at least 1.7% of GDP. This lonely factor has largely disturbed socio-economic wellbeing of the women. In case of women working as labor they are facing more destitution and inequality in wages and other benefits. Condition is worst in case of migrant workers; child labor, forced labor, slavery and occupational health. There are many countries where there is discrimination in women transport services, passport services, vehicle driving, entertainment and communication. Behind all these odd situations lack of education and personal development of women are responsible factors. There are two sustainable development goals gender equality (SDGs 2030 no. 5) and decent work and economic growth (No. 8) also direct us for development of women without any discrimination in work, wedge, livelihood and living. Though there are many parameters of viewing economic development, but culture and its relationship can boost economic development in rural as well as in urban area.
For every girl child recurring deposit schemes are required during school age with insured money by government to assist the girl child in rural areas where there is no economic base is available to them. There should be school level program to keep a close watch on child marriage, because rural people think that girl child are burden on their shoulders, hence, choose un-lawful act of child marriage. It has high economic impact on economic development of girl child that results in higher fertility, severe prenatal and postnatal health problems, lower educational attainment and lower lifetime earnings, with other negative outputs. Child marriage is a part of the newly adopted sustainable development goals or agenda 2030. But despite a growing acknowledgement of the harms of child marriage, not nearly enough is being done to end this practice. If girls and women are discriminated against in accessing education and training, the country is denied of a skilled human capital needed otherwise to promote growth. Alternatively, investment in girls/ women education proved to be a more effective way of controlling the size of a population and improving child’s welfare.
Issues Related to Cultural Well Being of Women
In every society there are social rules, standards and regulations that will assist in formation of system of law-based governance. Formation of law, rules, policies, rights and values articulates democracy with social system. Both democracy and human society should promote cultural and economic development for sustainability of generation and ecological system. In human society culture is not developed in days but it is outcome of our long legacy of past, formed through shared and learned social norms, values, behaviors, education, rituals, customs and traditions and communication. It is main dimension of ecological development, international cooperation, and socio-economic inter-relationships among democratic countries. Cultural diversity is an important development factor that provides identity, exposure to long heritage, environmental and social wellbeing and human behavior in group. It is also related with internal development of society, resource sharing, and social networking. Cultural dimension of environmental management is widely concerned to world heritage, traditional knowledge, witnessing the gradual emergence of a universal, global culture with equal rights and values. It holds adherence to civil and human rights, gender equality, respect for property rights, favors the rule of law, acceptance of market forces as a mechanism for resource allocation. Due to rising trends of international communication on education, social structure and culture, it is quite necessary to prepare girl child for multicultural development. Girl child should provide knowledge of art and craft, customs dressing style, forms of address and relating to others are important as practical subjects. In addition, development of communication skills, language, behavior identity, non-verbal communication and interpretation of meaning is also essential. They also need knowledge of modern tools such as computer programming, visual methods, including photo voice, and participatory video, digital storytelling, creative writing, debate, adventures, fares, films, acting, designing, art, culture, games, focuses on identifying and addressing gendered violence in communities. For making family structure ideal they should be acquainted with kinship, leniency, morality, social norms, religion, decision making and self-reliant in economic development.
Conclusion
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