Women’s Health and Nutritional Needs

Every year we observe March 8 as International Women’s Day. According to the Unite Nations, the purpose of this day is to uphold women’s achievements, recognize challenges, and focus greater attention on women’s rights and gender equality. The state of women’s health and nutrition is critical to their overall well-being. Adequate nutritional status of women significantly impacts their work capacity and the health of their children. Eating a well-balanced diet and practicing good nutritional habits can aid in the prevention of several ailments, and thus help in maintenance of good health. In this article, we discuss some of the major nutritional disorders prevalent among Indian women, nutritional needs of women during different life stages, and some tips to address these concerns.

Richa Pande

According to the NFHS 5 data, more than 50 % Indian women and adolescent girls are anaemic. There’s high prevalence of malnutrition concerns like underweight and overweight/obesity at the same time. Additionally, the prevalence on non-communicable diseases (NCDs) like hypertension, diabetes, cancer, heart disease, arthritis, and osteoporosis among Indian women.

They also struggle with micronutrient deficiencies. The above data gives us an insight about the nutritional status of Indian women.

The above data gives us an insight about the nutritional status of Indian women. Now lets us try to understand the reasons behind it. Women are more likely than men to experience nutritional deficiencies due to a variety of factors, including their reproductive biology, low social status, poverty, and lack of education.

Women have different nutritional needs at different stages of life. Women go through several hormonal changes throughout their lives, making certain nutrients essential at different stages for their healthy development and overall well-being.

Nutrition during Adolescence

During adolescence a girl goes through many physical and hormonal changes coupled with increased growth rate, hence nutritious food is essential for her growth and development. Her diet must include all essential macro and micronutrients with an emphasis on adequate consumption of Protein, Calcium, and Iron. Consumption of junk food should be limited. It’s important to practice healthy eating habits during this stage as these will be carried on into later stages of life.

Nutritional Care for Young Women

Post adolescence, women undergo a transformative stage as well as these are the years when they pursue higher education, career interests, get married, and plan a family. It’s natural to get stressed during this stage but it’s important to deliberately make good health choices such as staying physically active, taking care of your mental health, avoiding emotional eating, etc. It’s important to have enough amounts of Protein, Iron, Calcium, Vitamin D, Omega -3 fats, and Vitamin B12.

Pre-conception Health

It’s crucial for a woman to have a good nutritional status if she is planning to get pregnant. Women diagnosed with PCOD, thyroid, or anaemia must take special care of their health especially if they are planning to get pregnant. Underweight and overweight women should also focus on weight management before conceiving a child. You can seek a nutritionist/ health practitioner’s advice to manage your diet if you are planning to get pregnant. It’s important to understand that pregnancy can affect your mental health. Also, you can deal with post-partum depression, thus it is advisable to stay educated about mental health and take necessary precautions before pregnancy itself. Know that to deal with the changes during this stage, you need a strong body and mind, which can only be obtained by adopting a healthy eating style, sufficient physical activity, and adequate rest.

Nutritional care during pregnancy and while feeding a child

During pregnancy, it’s important to seek the advice of a health practitioner and follow it. Take proper rest and adequate sleep. Have foods rich in folic acid, Vitamin B12, Vitamin D, Calcium, Omega-3 fats and Iron. If you face any discomfort, discuss it with your healthcare provider. It’s also important to educate yourself about feeding your child in advance. It’s also important to have knowledge about your nutritional needs when you are feeding your child. You can discuss this with a nutritionist or a dietitian and can further self-educate yourself about it via literature recommended by your health practitioner. Note that along with the nutrients, your fluid intake will play an important role in managing the feeding experience.

Pre-menopausal Health

It’s important to take care of your health throughout your life but special emphasis must be put on it when you are in your late thirties and early forties. Educating yourself about perimenopause, and menopause is a good idea. Women start perimenopause at different ages. During this stage, you might notice some irregularity in your periods. You are diagnosed to have menopause once you’ve gone through 12 consecutive months without a menstrual period. It’s important to have regular health check-ups during this stage, eating healthy, staying physically active, and taking proper rest and adequate sleep. Practicing yoga, meditation, and breathing exercises can be soothing. It’s vital to have foods rich in Calcium, Folic acid, Vitamin B12, Vitamin C, and Fibre. It’s important to note that post menopause, your body requirement of Iron decreases. If you were taking Iron supplements before menopause, consult your health practitioner for an adjusted dose for during perimenopause and post-menopause.

Dietary sources of some micronutrients crucial for women’s health
Calcium	Cereals and legumes like ragi, bengal gram, horse gram, rajma and soyabean). Green leafy vegetables like amaranth, cauliflower greens, curry leaves, knol-khol leave, agathi leaves, Colocasia leaves. Nuts and oilseeds like almonds, sesame seeds, tahini seeds, etc. Dairy products like milk, curd, yogurt, buttermilk, cheese, etc.
Iron	Green leafy vegetables such as amaranth, spinach, bengal gram leaves, cauliflower greens and radish leaves. Organ meats, poultry, and seafood. Oilseeds like pumpkin seeds, flax seeds, and sunflower seeds. Fortified Salt. Eating iron rich foods with foods rich in Vitamin C improves the absorption of iron.
Vitamin B9/ Folate/ Folic Acid	Vegetables such as broccoli, amaranth, beets, peas, kale, spinach, etc. Pulses like chickpeas, bengal gram, black gram, green gram, and red gram. Oil seeds like peanuts, sesame seeds and sunflower seeds. Eggs are also a good source of vitamin B9.Citrus fruits like oranges, grapefruit, lemons, and limes are rich in folic acid. Papayas, Bananas, Avocados ARE ALSO RICH IN FOLATE.
Vitamin C	amla, guava, kiwis, lemons, oranges, papaya, strawberries, tomatoes ,
Vitamin D	egg yolk, salmon, tuna, cod liver oil, sardines, mushroom, Vitamin D fortified foods

It’s time for women to prioritise their own nutritional and health needs because taking care of ourselves comes before taking care of others. Women frequently disregard these needs. They must also ask for assistance when they need it rather than struggling silently and letting it affect their wellbeing.

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