Malnourished

Confined

The Hunger Project Online Briefing Program
The Condition of Women in South Asia
Page 12 of 25

Cost

6. The Cycle of Malnutrition

Ill-health and malnutrition of women is critically linked to the persistence of hunger. When women are malnourished, their children are malnourished.

The exceptionally high rates of malnutrition in South Asia are rooted deep in the soil of inequality between men and women.
–UNICEF 1996, The Asian Enigma

East last, eat least

Experts agree that the health and well-being of a mother throughout her life is directly related to the health and well-being of her child. When a woman is unhealthy and malnourished – from her own infancy through to motherhood - her baby will be unhealthy and malnourished.
Social conditions in South Asia dictate that women and girls eat last and eat least in the family.

(Photo by Robin Romano)

Because of their poor diet, many women suffer from severe vitamin and mineral deficiencies, which expose them to serious health risks, including increased susceptibility to diseases, and maternal and infant death.
In India, a woman may consume 1,000 fewer calories per day than her husband, sons, father and brothers.
In Bangladesh, the calorie intake of women is 29% less than that of men.
In Bangladesh, 77% of pregnant women from middle-income households and more than 95% of those from low income households weigh less than the standard of 50 kilograms (110 pounds).

From mother to child

As a result of poor health and nutrition, 60% of women of childbearing age in South Asia are themselves underweight and malnourished. By contrast, the proportion of malnourished women in sub-Saharan Africa is only 20%.
In Bangladesh, when women are pregnant and breastfeeding, malnutrition rises to more than 70%.
By the time babies are born, 1/2 of the babies born in Bangladesh, and 1/3 of those born in India are underweight at birth. This compares to 1/6 of those born in Africa and 7% born in the United States.
For children under the age of five, 53% in India and 56% in Bangladesh are malnourished and underweight. Girls are more severely malnourished than boys.

Confined

The Hunger Project Online Briefing Program
The Condition of Women in South Asia
Page 12 of 25

Cost