The biggest treasure a human possesses is their health. The importance of health is continuously stressed upon by the government and various NGOs. The most urgent need in the country is to have healthy women force, as due to the biological differences they are more prone to the health problems faced in the country.
There exists a necessary to raise awareness about the basic healthcare needs as many parts of the country register cases of malnourishment along with deaths due to the poor sanitation and female health issues. The problems are more widely spread in the rural parts of the country where lack of medical services, illiteracy and safe drinking water make it more difficult to sustain lives.
India’s high infant mortality rates stems from two basic reasons. The first is the lack of nourishment that the parents fail to provide the child with and the unawareness about the importance of breastfeeding. This leads to a stunted growth in the child. The other main reason is the use of other supplementary food sources to substitute the breastmilk since the mother is malnourished. the best remedy for these problems is to provide mother with proper nutrition and she should continue to breastfeed as breastfeeding itself cures the problems such as malnutrition in the child and lowers risks of cancer for the mother. Breastfeeding also improves the immunity level in the child to provide healthier life, in line with the motto healthy women for healthier children.
The sanitation problems in the country are vastly overlooked as the absence of toilets and garbage disposal is a major issue. However, for women the monthly menstruation cycle makes the needs of toilets and garbage disposal vital. But before that the most basic article of need- sanitary napkins or tampons are unheard of in villages. Women use alternatives such as unclean cloth and some women shockingly enough use husk sand for the same purpose. The great deal of risk that they cater to by using these alternates are unknown by these women. Recently the surveys have marked a descent improvement, from 12% in 2010 to almost 58% in 2016 usage of proper sanitary napkins or tampons has led to the betterment in hygiene of women.
The health care sector has noted a high maternal mortality rate. Women during pregnancy requires nourishment and nutrients adequately, but the poverty struck households fail to provide the women with the needful. However, maternal mortality is not identical across all of India or even a particular state; urban areas often have lower overall maternal mortality with to the availability of adequate medical resources. For example, states with higher literacy and growth rates tend to have better maternal health and also lower infant mortality.
The healthcare sector in India has revamped over the last few decades. With the various plans executed by the governments and NGOs such as Smile Foundation, the awareness about healthcare has been widespread. The efforts put together through various sources shall benefit the healthcare for women and children, eventually leading to better economic growth and better growth rates. With healthy women and a healthier youth, the nation will have the potential to reach new heights.
To know more about Smile Foundation’s initiative please log in to https://www.smilefoundationindia.org/smile_on_wheels.html
