Female-headed households versus male-headed households: The health and nutritional status of adult women and their children.

摘要

Approximately one-third of all poor urban households in Latin America are headed by females. The purpose of this study was to compare the health and nutritional status of women and children living in female-headed (FHH) and male/dual headed (MHH/DHH) households from two economically disadvantaged neighborhoods in Cali, Colombia.;Interviews of 125 women were conducted to gather data on household composition, perception of health as a rough indicator of morbidity, household spending patterns, and residence histories as an indicator of socioeconomic status. Nutritional status of the women was assessed using the following measures: anthropometric measurements, body mass index, work capacity, blood hemoglobin concentrations, dietary intake, and parasite load. Children's nutritional status was assessed using anthropometric measurements and z-score comparisons with reference populations.;Classification of household headship was based on both the person identified as head and the primary economic provider of the household. Childless women and women lacking current nutritional status data were excluded from the final analysis. Of the remaining women (n = 101), 80% were from MHH/DHHs and 20% from FHHs.;FHHs had significantly fewer material possessions and lived in houses made of less expensive materials when compared to MHHs. The only significant difference for all of the nutritional and health status indicators was that women in FHHs had significantly lower work capacities than women in MHH/DHHs. Most women had body mass indices within the normal range (19 to 29). The majority of children (95%) had weight for height z-scores within ;Therefore, while members of FHHs are economically disadvantaged compared to MHH/DHHs, they are not different in health or nutritional status. Women appear to focus their income on food and necessities in order to provide sufficient energy intake.;These results are significant for policy and development programs in identifying that FHHs in Cali, Colombia are economically disadvantaged but not disadvantaged in health or nutrition.