Women In Tamil Nadu Research Articles

Birth in Those Days: Tamil Women’s Critiques of Agriculture Globalization

As the rickshaw sputters along the dusty path, I brace myself against the cool metal side panel, stretching forward to get a better view of the vibrant green fields that surround us. My journey to Tirukarai, a remote village in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, has lasted nearly an hour now, but the scenery has remained largely unchanged. The narrow road meanders through paddy fields that stretch to the horizon. Swathed in this endless sea of green, cliched notions of a timeless rural India seem rather convincing. Despite appearances, however, much has changed in these fields over the last few decades. I originally traveled to Tamil Nadu to conduct ethnographic research on rural women’s experiences of pregnancy and birth. In nearly all of my interviews, women expressed a conviction that childbirth today has become more dangerous than ever before. Specifically, women suggested that a decline in the variety of foods available to poor women in Tamil Nadu and the increased use of agrochemicals in the region has rendered their bodies weaker and unable to give birth safely. Though my initial interest had been in childbirth, I found myself focusing increasingly on the women’s perceptions of recent dietary shifts and the consequences these changes were having on their health. My conversations with these women convinced me that their condemnation of their modern diet and its implications on their health was not simply a reflection of their collective, self-embodied knowledge. It also expressed a profound and critical understanding of the negative impact that agricultural policies promoted by the Indian state and powerful international forces have had on their lives. Though the majority of women I spoke with had little schooling and had rarely, if ever, heard the term globalization, I argue that their narratives demonstrate a nuanced understanding of the deleterious effects the process has on their lives. While statistics contradict women’s assertions that birth is more dangerous today than in the past, the physiological effects of dietary change that these women describe are very real and merit further consideration.

Does Socio-demographic Determinants Influence Complications while Delivery among Young Married Women in TamilNadu, India

Around one fifth of the births worldwide and one fourth of maternal deaths are occurring in India. Social causes such as inequality in providing proper nutrition, education, and medical treatment may affect women's health. The aim of this study was to assess socio-demographic determinants influence complications while child delivery among young married scheduled castes women in Thiruvarur district, TamilNadu state, India. Multistage stratified random sampling technique was applied to select 605 women in the age group of 15-24 years in the five blocks of Thiruvarur district during July 2010 - April 2011. The result reveals that half of the scheduled castes women were experienced delivery complications (49.4%). The most common delivery problem reported by women was premature labor (30.8%), obstructed labor (15.7%) and excessive bleeding (14%). Logistic regression analysis shows that, when compared with women (18-20 years), women in higher age (24 years) were less likely to experience delivery complications (OR=0.296). The women who experienced delivery complication decreased steadily and negatively associated with the standard of living index, when compared to the low standard of living index, women in household in the highest standard of living index were less likely to experience delivery complications (0.191 times lesser). The age at marriage (OR=0.203) had a significant negative effect on the incidence of delivery complications. It concludes that women in the study area were living with very poor standard of health because of less educated, unemployment, inadequate health care centers. They are the victims of not only reproductive health problems but also other communicable diseases.

Medical abortion: Understanding perspectives of rural and marginalized women from rural South India

ObjectiveTo understand how rural and other groups of marginalized women define safe abortion; their perspectives and concerns regarding medical abortion (MA); and what factors affect their access to safe abortion. MethodsFocus group discussions were held with various groups of rural and marginalized women in Tamil Nadu to understand their perspectives and concerns on abortion, especially MA. ResultsNearly a decade after mifepristone was approved for abortion in India, most study participants had never heard of MA. When they learned of the method, most preferred it over other methods of abortion. The women also had questions and concerns about the method and recommendations on how services should be provided. Their definition of a “safe abortion” included criteria beyond medical safety. They placed a high priority on “social safety,” including confidentiality and privacy. In their view, factors affecting access to safe abortion and choice of provider included cost, assurance of secrecy, promptness of service provision, and absence of provider gatekeeping and provider-imposed conditions for receiving services. ConclusionWomen's preference for MA shows the potential of this technology to address the problem of unsafe abortion in India. Women need better access to information and services to realize this potential, however. Women's preferences regarding information dissemination and service provision need to be taken into account if policies and programs are to be truly responsive to the needs of marginalized women.

Prevalence of exclusive breastfeeding practices among rural women in Tamil Nadu

Background: Poor infant feeding practices and their consequences are one of the world's major problems and a serious obstacle to social and economic development. Various studies have shown that infant feeding could be influenced by socioeconomic status, maternal education, place of living and many other factors. Hence a prevalence study on exclusive breastfeeding was conducted in rural Tamil Nadu. Aim and Objective: To assess the prevalence of exclusive breastfeeding practices and the factors influencing them among women in a rural area in Tamil Nadu. Materials and Methods: It is a cross-sectional study conducted in Attyampatti Panchyat Union, Salem district, Tamil Nadu, from March 2011-June 2011. All the 291 children in the age group of six months to two years in Attyampatti Panchayat Union were included in the study, irrespective of any sample. The data was analyzed using SPSS package. Results: Among the study population 52.6% were male children and 47.4% were females. Only 99 (34%) children were exclusively breastfed for six months. The majority of women (60.5%) initiated breastfeeding within half an hour after delivery. Various demographic factors like the education of the mother, type of delivery, type of family, occupation, number of children, monthly income, family size, age at marriage and religion had a direct influence on exclusive breastfeeding, which in turn influenced the weight of the baby and immune status of the child. Most of the mothers (44.7%) inferred that the main reason for giving bottle feed is because of inadequate breast milk secretion. Conclusion: The prevalence of exclusive breastfeeding is low in this particular area. Hence promotion of exclusive breastfeeding and focus on the factors affecting them is highly warranted in this area.

Registration and monitoring of pregnant women in Tamil Nadu, India: a critique

In 2008 a pregnancy registration system was introduced in rural Tamil Nadu, India, which is now being scaled up. It will collect data on antenatal, delivery and post-partum care in pregnant women and infant health. This is seen as an important public health intervention, justified for its potential to ensure efficiency in provision and use of maternity services. However, from another perspective, it can be seen as a form of control over women, reducing the experience of safe pregnancy and delivery to a few measurable variables. The burden of implementing this task falls on Village Health Nurses, who are also women, reducing their time for interacting with and educating people and visiting communities, which is their primary task and the basis on which they are evaluated. In addition, they face logistical constraints in rural settings that may affect the quality of data. In a health system with rigid internal hierarchies and power differentials, this system may become more of a supervisory and monitoring tool than a tool for a learning health system. It may also lead to a victim-blaming approach (“you missed two antenatal visits”) rather than health system learning to improve maternal and infant health. The paper concludes by recommending ways to use the system and the data to tackle the broader social determinants of health, with women, health workers and communities as partners in the process.

Contraceptive practices among adolescent married women in Tamil Nadu, India

ObjectiveTo investigate the contraceptive practices among adolescent married women of Tamil Nadu state, India. MethodsWe used the data of District Level Household Survey-Reproductive Child Health (DLHS-RCH), Round-II which was conducted in two phases (phase-I during 2002-2003 and phase-II during 2003–2004) in Tamil Nadu. The data consist of 25 522 ever-married women. ResultsAbout 92 percent of the subjects are not currently using any of the contraceptive methods. In terms of social characteristics of married women, who were currently using or not using any one of the family planning methods, caste is found to be highly significant (P <0.000). In economic characteristics per cent of using contraception is considerably higher in the women with medium standard of living. Difference between number of children ever born, gravida and using of contraception methods is highly significant (P <0.000). ConclusionsStudy is indicative of implementation of new programme, which may increase awareness about family planning programme in Tamil Nadu state.

Microcredit Self-Help Groups for Widowed and Abandoned Women in South India: Do They Help?

ABSTRACTResults are presented from a study on a microcredit program with self-help groups implemented for widowed and abandoned women in Tamil Nadu shortly after the Indian Ocean Tsunami. Data were collected from 109 participants measuring the women's investment patterns, loan amounts, demographics, and overall well-being (psychological, economic, communal, and familial). Results indicate that loan amounts and investment patterns were not significantly related to the women's well-being. Length of group participation and having children were negatively related to the women's well-being. These findings are discussed in relation to social and cultural contexts. Suggestions for programs for this population of vulnerable women and other marginalized groups are proposed.

Antecedents of Voluntary Surgical Sterilization Among Poor Women in Tamil Nadu: Urban vs. Rural Areas

Studies show that health education and better access to temporary contraceptives decreases the popularity of sterilization and that most Indian women report no knowledge/no use of other contraceptives prior to sterilization. However, data from this survey of 169 Indian urban and rural women demonstrates that poor women chose sterilization more for personal and socio-economic reasons (low income, dissatisfaction with other methods, achieved parity, poor health and living conditions) than for lack of awareness of other contraceptives. Urban women were significantly more likely to have tried one or more forms of available contraceptives, while rural women were significantly more likely to be unaware of other available methods (p < 0.001). Literacy was significantly associated with contraceptive use in both urban and rural groups (p < 0.01). At least one child of each sex was desired. A need for improvement of literacy, health education programs, and enhanced family planning services for rural women was evident.

Reproductive Tract Infections Among Young Married Women in Tamil Nadu, India

Women often suffer silently with reproductive tract infections (RTIs). Studies of the prevalence of these infections in South Asia have been hindered by low participation rates, and little is known about rates among the youngest married women. A community-based cross-sectional study of RTIs was conducted in 1996-1997 among married women 16-22 years of age in Tamil Nadu, India. The women were questioned about symptoms, received pelvic and speculum examinations and provided samples for laboratory tests. Qualitative and quantitative data on treatment-seeking behavior were collected. Fifty-three percent of women reported gynecologic symptoms, 38% had laboratory findings of RTIs and 14% had clinically diagnosed pelvic inflammatory disease or cervicitis. According to laboratory diagnoses, 15% had sexually transmitted infections and 28% had endogenous infections. Multivariate analysis found that women who worked as agricultural laborers had an elevated likelihood of having a sexually transmitted infection (odds ratio, 2.4), as did those married five or more years (2.1). Two-thirds of symptomatic women had not sought any treatment; the reasons cited were absence of a female provider in the nearby health care center, lack of privacy, distance from home, cost and a perception that their symptoms were normal. Young married women in this rural Indian community have a high prevalence of RTIs but seldom seek treatment. Education and outreach are needed to reduce the stigma, embarrassment and lack of knowledge related to RTIs. The low social status of women, especially young women, appears to be a significant influence on their low rates of treatment for these conditions.

Mate selection and its impact on female marriage age, pregnancy wastages, and first child survival in Tamil Nadu, India.

Marriage in Indian society is a religious duty. Consanguineous marriage is common, where individuals prefer to marry within their clan (a unilateral kin group based on either matrilineal or patrilineal descent). Keeping in mind that this form of marriage has certain disadvantages for social and biological as well as demographic aspects of individuals and families, the present study examines the influence of mate selection (i.e., close relatives, distant relatives, not related) on female age at marriage, pregnancy wastages, and survival status of the first child. The study was designed based on the information collected on a sample size of 3,948 married women aged 13-49 in Tamil Nadu, India, by the National Family Health Survey (NFHS), 1992. Results suggest that 48 per cent of women in Tamil Nadu marry their relatives. This practice of marrying relatives is high in rural areas, among Hindus, Scheduled Castes/tribes, and illiterate women as compared to urban areas, among non-Hindus, non-SC/ST, and educated women, respectively. The bivariate analysis reveals that women marrying their close relatives had low age at marriage and experienced a higher per cent of pregnancy wastage and child loss (first child) as compared to those women marrying their distant relatives or nonrelatives. The result is found to be consistent even after controlling for selected background variables through multivariate techniques (applied separately for age at marriage, pregnancy wastages, and the survival status of first child). Hence, this study suggests that steps should be taken to inform people about the problems of marrying close relatives through appropriate IEC programs in Tamil Nadu.

Medical management and giving birth: Responses of coastal women in Tamil Nadu

This paper is an ethnographer's attempt to present the experience of maternity among lowcaste Mukkuvar women of the coastal fishing belt of Kanyakumari district in Tamil Nadu in India and the women's responses to modern medical ‘management’ of pregnancy and birth. It argues that women's decisions whether or not to seek medical care during pregnancy, and where to give birth, are based on a finely tuned appreciation of the ways in which class and caste power shape their experience of medical institutions.