Pakistan is a male dominant society where very few females get to enjoy basic human rights and exercise their fundamental access and rights to have opportunities. This is even more true in the health sector, where women’s health issues usually go unnoticed. On top of that, there is a lack of female doctors in the small cities and villages which serves as the cherry on top of the ignorance of women’s health issues in Pakistan.
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Overview of Women’s Health Issues in Pakistan
While both men and women can develop a variety of illnesses, some health problems are more frequently and differently experienced by women.
Furthermore, the majority of pharmacological trials do not use female test participants, and many health disorders specific to women go misdiagnosed. However, several health issues are exclusive to women, such as pregnancy, menopause, breast cancer, and cervical cancer.
How is Gender Disparity in Pakistan’s Healthcare System Contributing to the Dismal Health of Women?
Compared to men, women die from heart attacks more frequently. Female patients tend to experience depression and anxiety more frequently. Females have disorders of the urinary system more frequently, and sexually transmitted illnesses can injure women more severely.
In many households, women receive inadequate nourishment, and families are very reluctant to take female members of their families to a male doctor. Even worse, Pakistan’s healthcare system does not accept any of the 85,000 female doctors who have earned medical degrees.
We have compiled a list of top women’s health issues in Pakistan that needs to be addressed as it is the need of the hour. These women’s health issues in Pakistan are most common and are associated with significant health risks.
Heart Disease
Contrary to popular belief, breast cancer is not the leading cause of death among women. According to studies, heart disease is the main cause of death for women over 55.
Your arteries suffer irreparable damage as a result of the blood vessels gradual clogging, making it more difficult for you to carry out daily tasks as usual.
The following are some typical risk factors for heart disease in women:
Diabetes: High blood sugar affects the arteries, putting people at greater risk of developing plaque.
Menopause: Researchers believe that the abrupt decline in estrogen during menopause may be the reason for the association between menopause and heart disease.
Hypertension: high blood pressure stresses the arteries by making the heart work harder than usual.
Other risk factors include obesity, long periods of inactivity, smoking, and genetics.
Stroke
Stroke strikes 55,000 more women than men annually.
Hemorrhagic stroke, or brain bleeding, and ischemic stroke, or blood vessel obstruction leading to reduced blood flow, are the two different forms of stroke.
Stroke symptoms include trouble speaking and numbness in the extremities might vary depending on the underlying cause of the condition.
Pregnancy and stroke are also associated. Your risk of stroke can rise if you have preeclampsia, a disorder marked by high blood pressure during pregnancy.
Hypercoagulation, or excessive blood clotting, which can also develop during pregnancy, increases the risk of blood clot issues in neurologic events. Your brain’s blood flow may then be impeded by these blood clots.
Diabetes
According to research, 1 in 10 pregnant women who give birth have diabetes. This is concerning since women with diabetes are more likely to experience pregnancy problems.
Kidney failure and cardiovascular conditions such as heart attacks and strokes have also been related to diabetes.
You should consume a nutritious diet, engage in regular exercise, abstain from smoking, and keep a healthy weight in order to prevent this condition.
Gynecological Health Issues
Women’s health issues in Pakistan regarding reproductive health encompass a broad range of health concerns. Some of them are as:
Pregnancy & Postpartum
Pre-existing conditions can get worse during pregnancy, endangering both the mother’s and the unborn child’s health. If untreated, conditions including asthma, diabetes, and depression during pregnancy can be harmful to both the mother and the fetus.
Experts at Avicenna Hospital say that a healthy mother’s red blood cell count might fall during pregnancy, a disease known as anemia, and it can also lead to sadness.
When a reproductive cell implants outside the uterus, it creates another issue and prevents continued gestation. Obstetricians can thankfully manage and treat both common and uncommon health problems that arise during pregnancies.
Massive advancements in prenatal and postpartum care made over the past century are now helping a lot of women. However, not everyone can enjoy these advantages, and in 2013, close to 300 000 women lost their lives due to difficulties during pregnancy and childbirth.
If family planning and any other fairly basic services had been available, the majority of these deaths may have been avoided.
Menstrual Cycle
The menstrual cycle naturally includes bleeding and discharge. However, additional symptoms during menstruation may be a sign of a problem and uncommon symptoms like bleeding between periods and frequent urination can be mistaken for illnesses.
Vaginal troubles could also be a sign of more serious concerns including cancer of the reproductive system or STDs, which are sexually transmitted infections.
While mild infections may be simple for medical professionals to treat, if they go untreated, they can result in diseases like infertility or kidney failure.
Menopause
All women eventually experience terrible menopause.
Despite the fact that not all women experience a difficult transition, the majority of them must deal with mood changes, hot flashes, night sweats, and sleep issues. These symptoms, which are typically known as perimenopausal symptoms, can endure for a period of 12 months to 4 years.
You should maintain a good diet, get regular exercise, control your stress, and arrange routine doctor’s appointments in order to make the transition easier.
Infertility
About 12% of women between the ages of 15 and 44 struggle to conceive or bring a pregnancy to term. Consult your doctor about infertility treatment choices if you’ve tried to conceive and haven’t been successful after one year of unprotected intercourse.
Age, smoking, excessive alcohol use, untreated STDs, extreme weight gain or loss, physical or emotional stress, and more can all raise a person’s risk for infertility.
Through correct diagnosis and treatment, many infertile women can go on to have healthy pregnancies.
Urinary Tract Infections
When germs invade the urethra and begin to grow, urinary tract infections (UTIs) result. Due to the fact that a woman’s urethra is shorter than a man’s, she is more likely to experience them. That’s why UTIs are one of the major women’s health issues.
Frequent urination, pain or burning when peeing, and murky urine are all signs of a UTI.
Although a UTI may resolve on its own, a doctor may advise antibiotics if necessary. Other tests can determine whether the urinary system is healthy if UTIs start to occur frequently.
Sexual Health
Sexually transmitted infections are a leading women’s health issue. There are more than 30 different kinds of STDs (STIs). Human papillomavirus (HPV) is one of the most prevalent. At some point in their life, over 80% of sexually active men and women will contract HPV.
Young women, who are sexually active, continue to get the majority of new HIV infections. Too many young women still struggle to acquire the necessary care and protection against HIV sexual transmission.
Additionally, this makes them especially susceptible to TB, which is one of the major causes of mortality for women between the ages of 20 and 59 in low-income nations.
Breast Cancer
The most aggressive cancer affecting women worldwide is breast cancer, which often develops in the lining of the milk ducts. It is also one of the top women’s health issues in Pakistan.
Prof. Dr. Alia Bashir, who is one of the best gynecologists in Pakistan says that breast cancer has the potential to spread to other organs. Due to their longer lifespans, the illness is more prevalent in female populations in developed countries.
Women with breast cancer may have breast lumps at first. Although the majority of breast lumps are not dangerous, it is crucial for women to get each one examined by a medical professional.
Osteoporosis
In a woman’s lifetime, osteoporosis will affect one out of every two of them. Additionally, this hidden illness begins long before issues arise.
It is best to start preserving your bones as soon as possible. Women’s bone mass peaks by age 30, making the childhood and teenage years key for bone building.
However, by consuming enough calcium and vitamin D, as well as strengthening their bones with weight-bearing workouts, all women can help avoid osteoporosis.
Read more about vitamin D-rich foods.
Autoimmune Diseases
When immune system cells that combat dangers like viruses attack healthy cells, an autoimmune illness results.
Researchers are still perplexed as to why this ailment primarily affects women, especially as its prevalence among the population rises.
While there are many different autoimmune illnesses, the majority of them have symptoms like exhaustion, a slight fever, pain, rashes on the skin, vertigo, etc.
The stomach is where the autoimmune system is mostly located. As a result, many people with this ailment have turned to natural therapeutic methods like lowering stress, eating fewer sweets and fat, cutting back on toxins, etc.
What are the Steps Needed to Improve Women’s Health in Pakistan?
According to a new World Bank research, Pakistan needs to put more of an emphasis on reproduction as part of a comprehensive healthcare strategy that would improve the state of women’s health in the nation.
The health of women in Pakistan is among the worst in the world and does not favorably contrast with that of women in the surrounding South Asian nations. Pregnancy-related deaths affect one in every 38 women in Pakistan.
According to the report Improving Women’s Health in Pakistan, “if action is not taken immediately, Pakistan may fall farther behind its Asian neighbors in human capital development and imperil future possibilities for economic progress.”
High birth rates and poor health among women substantially impair not only Pakistani families’ capacity for production but also the country’s future growth potential.
The new report recommends a coordinated reproductive health program to be run by the Ministries of Health and Population Welfare, with an emphasis on measures to strengthen the health system to better address the needs of Pakistani women.
The research highlights the necessity of:
- Increasing access to community-based family planning services, especially in remote regions, Educating and assisting female healthcare professionals
- Expanding private sector services like NGOs’ outreach efforts and social marketing campaigns.
Women’s Health During COVID-19 in Pakistan?
Women and their families are at higher risk of transmission due to a lack of access to crucial COVID-19 information.
Additionally, it restricts their access to crucial resources like hotlines and internet platforms in the event of a health, financial, or violent crisis.
Women must have direct access to the knowledge they need to safeguard themselves and their families against COVID-19 since females play important roles in the home and are typically in charge of overseeing hygiene procedures.
Pakistan has confirmed 74 percent of instances for men compared to only 26 percent of cases for women, according to the COVID-19 based demographic data tracker for Pakistan.
How Can We Improve Women’s Health?
Pakistan has the potential to lower its high rates of maternal and infant mortality and improve the status of women with more concerted efforts.
Effective changes, however, will necessitate:
- A strong commitment from the government and decentralized management.
- A change from a top-down, physician-dominated system to a client-centered model.
- Adoption of a reproductive health approach.
- Clear goals and indicators, with monitoring and evaluation systems
- Involvement from nongovernmental organizations, local communities, and women in planning and implementation.
Are You Keeping Your Health a Priority?
When you consider all the potential health issues that could affect women, it’s very simple to feel overwhelmed. However, worrying will not help you, so concentrate on the factors that you can control to reduce the health risks mentioned above.
You can keep yourself healthy by engaging in regular exercise and leading a healthy lifestyle. When you begin exhibiting the risk indicators, you should also speak with your doctor.
It’s best to keep in touch with a general physician or a well-known gynecologist for regular check-ups regarding your reproductive health. You can use Healthwire’s online platform to book an appointment.
