How gender norms affect anemia in select villages in rural Odisha, India: A qualitative study.

ABSTRACT:

Background

In India, 50% of women of reproductive age, compared with 23% of men, have iron deficiency anemia. Extant research focuses on biological, not social, determinants of this disparity.

Objectives

The aim of this study was to examine how gender norms may affect anemia prevalence among women in rural India.

Methods

We conducted 16 focus group discussions (N = 124) with women of reproductive age, husbands, and mothers-in-law and 25 key informant interviews in four villages in Odisha, India.

Results

We identified the following themes that help explain how inequitable gender norms exacerbate anemia among women from different castes and tribes: Due to a double burden of work outside the home and completing the majority of unpaid work in the home, women lack t

SUBMITTER: Sedlander E 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8209141 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature