Women fare worse than men in the health parameters of obesity, risk of malnourishment and anaemia, according to the latest National Family Health Survey (NFHS). And when it comes to rural women, they fare worse than their urban sisters.
On International Day of Action for Women's Health 2022, we take a look at how India's women fare on some health parameters.
The NFHS-5, conducted between 2019 and 2021, shows that 18.7 percent of women out of those surveyed have their Body Mass Index (BMI) below normal as compared to 16.2 percent of men.
A BMI below 18.5 means one is in the underweight range and at high risk of malnourishment, while the index between 18.5 and 24.9 is considered as having a healthy weight. BMI above 25 is considered overweight.
What's heartening is the total number of women with BMI below normal, though higher than men, has fallen from 22.9 percent recorded in the last survey, NFHS-4. The number of men below the BMI has also decreased from 20.2 percent in the last survey.
The total number of women in rural areas with BMI below normal was more than the number of women in urban areas with BMI below normal.
The survey includes adults in the age group of 15-49 years.
On the contrary, the number of women who are overweight or obese has risen and is higher than the number of obese men.
The number of urban women who were obese was more than the number of rural women who were obese.
Fifty-seven percent of the women in the age group of 15-49 years were anaemic, while the share for women in the narrower age group of 15-19 years was 59 percent. Anaemia is a condition of lack of red cells or of haemoglobin in the blood.
The number of men in the age group of 15-49 years having anaemia was 25 percent and in the age group of 15-19 years the number was 31 percent.
It is to be noted that women remain at high risk of anaemia due to blood loss during menstruation and pregnancy. According to World Health Organization (WHO), 29.9 percent of women aged 15-49 years suffered from anaemia in 2019 globally.
"Failure to reduce anaemia may result in millions of women experiencing impaired health and quality of life and may impair children’s development and learning. Anaemia is an indicator of both poor nutrition and poor health," the WHO says.
Check out our in-depth Market Coverage, Business News & get real-time Stock Market Updates on CNBC-TV18. Also, Watch our channels CNBC-TV18, CNBC Awaaz and CNBC Bajar Live on-the-go!
Punjab Lok Sabha elections: Check full list of AAP candidates and constituencies
May 18, 2024 12:59 PM
PM Modi, Rahul Gandhi election rallies in Delhi today: Here are the routes to avoid
May 18, 2024 11:28 AM