Health News
2007-02-24
Nearly half of
Indian women have not heard of AIDS
More than 40% of
women in India have not heard of AIDS, according to a
government survey that has alarmed activists.
More than 40% of
women in India have not heard of AIDS, according to a
government survey that has alarmed activists.
India has 5.7
million people living with HIV/AIDS, the world's highest
caseload, according to the United Nations. But the
prevalence rate, in the country of 1.1 billion people,
is much lower than in most of Africa.
The National
Family Health Survey, the most extensive study on health and
nutrition in India, said in its latest report only 57% of
women have heard of AIDS.
In rural areas,
where most Indians live, fewer than half the
women—46%—were aware of the disease.
Activists said on
Friday that poor awareness among women was fueling the
epidemic.
"This shows women
don't have access to information, translating into
more women getting infected," said Anjali Gopalan, head of
Naz Foundation India, a leading anti-AIDS group.
In the past few
years, there has been a growing "feminisation" of the
epidemic in India with nearly 40% of all those infected now
being women, including housewives.
"Biologically,
women are more susceptible to HIV," said Christy
Abraham of ActionAid-India. "The lack of awareness adds to
the HIV threat they face."
One reason for
low awareness is that the government has focused
prevention efforts on high-risk groups like prostitutes and
intravenous drug users, rather than on the general
population.
"But we are
expanding prevention efforts among the general population
in rural areas, especially women, over the next five years,"
a government official said on condition of anonymity.
Many rural women
have been infected by their husbands who work in the
cities and visit prostitutes. Stigma stops infected husbands
from telling their wives they are HIV-positive.
The NFHS survey,
supported by UNICEF as well as the U.K. and U.S.
governments, shows a gulf in awareness between men and
women, with 80% of men having heard of the disease.
Only 54% of
Indian women are literate compared with 76% of men.
Many women in
villages do not have television in their homes and miss out
on anti-AIDS advertisements, say activists, calling for a
broad-based effort to educate and empower women.
"Even if they do
have TVs, there is no electricity in many areas. This
is one way how fighting HIV is linked to the issue of
general development," Abraham said.
Activists want
the government to spend more on training and sending
grassroot health workers to spread AIDS education among
women, especially in poorer and highly populated
states. (Kamil Zaheer, Reuters)
Click here to follow The Advocate on Twitter.
Page 1 of 1