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  • Title: Let her die.
    Author: Cowan B.
    Journal: Indian J Matern Child Health; 1990; 1(4):127-8. PubMed ID: 12346026.
    Abstract:
    Many Indian families would rather give birth to male children than to female children, especially if the child is the first born. Sons are nurtured and held as investments for the family's future. Nonetheless, after the initial disappointment of bearing a female, few families tend to discriminate against their girls to the extent of endangering their health or lives. While working in villages served by the community health program of the Christian Medical College, Ludhiana, Punjab, where there is no shortage of food, the researcher found that approximately half of the female children in underprivileged communities were severely malnourished throughout their second and third years of life. Only 15% of males in the same age group and community were, however, similarly malnourished, and among most, some other factor existed which may have contributed to their poor nutritional state. In addition, more than half of under-three year old mortality in all sections of the villages was to underprivileged females. These findings would suggest that a strong preference for sons in this community seriously compromises the health and survival of female children. Poverty, large families, and illiteracy seem to be the main causes of discrimination against female children. One third of the local population is comprised of landless laborers. Daughters make little contribution to family incomes and will cost money to be married off. The birth of a daughter may therefore be disastrous for fathers struggling to make ends meet. As such, families take great effort to keep alive and well their sons, but make no serious attempt to raise daughters. Many parents are not opposed to allowing their daughters to perish, even when efforts are made to help a mother care for her child. In the context of this general lack of parental interest in the survival of their daughters, the community health program identified some endangered females at birth and offered intensive home care to their families. Home-based nutrition, health education based upon available foods, and efforts to prevent or delay the birth of the next child resulted in fewer malnourished girls in some villages.
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