Globalization and infectious diseases in women
Bellamy, C.
Emerging Infectious Diseases 10(11): 2022-2024
2004
ISSN/ISBN: 1080-6040 PMID: 15550218 DOI: 10.3201/eid1011.040485Document Number: 237140
Women have an enhanced vulnerability to disease, especially if they are poor. Indeed, the health hazards of being female are widely underestimated. Economic and cultural factors can limit women's access to clinics and health workers. The World Health Organization (WHO) reports that less is spent on health care for women and girls worldwide than for men and boys. As a result, women who become mothers and caretakers of children and husbands often do so at the expense of their own health. The numbers tell the story: the latest (2003) World Health Report showed that, globally, the leading causes of death among women are HIV/AIDS, malaria, complications of pregnancy and childbirth, and tuberculosis.