Exploring the nexus between sociodemographic factors and hypertension, awareness, and treatment utilization among women in India
Hypertension is one of the leading non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in India. It is influenced by elevated blood sugar levels, higher body mass index (BMI), and various sociodemographic factors. This chronic condition poses a significant global health burden and adversely affects women’s health and treatment outcomes. Consistent with these facts, we aimed to investigate the crucial determinants of hypertension as well as patterns of awareness and treatment utilization among women in India. We used data from the fifth round of the National Family Health Survey, including 661,958 women aged 15–49 years. Descriptive statistics, a Chi-squared test, and a multivariable logistic regression model were employed to explore the associations and determinants of hypertension, awareness, and treatment utilization among women. The study found that the overall prevalence of hypertension, awareness, and treatment was 11.04%, 7.31%, and 2.82%, respectively. Moreover, older women (odds ratio [OR]: 5.90; p<0.005), women with lower levels of education (OR: 1.37; p<0.005), those belonging to Scheduled Tribes (OR: 1.23; p<0.005), women with higher BMI (OR: 2.56; p<0.005), women with diabetes (OR: 2.25; p<0.005), and women who smoked (OR: 1.15; p<0.005) had significantly higher odds of hypertension. In contrast, awareness and treatment of hypertension were less likely among women with lower education, those belonging to Scheduled Tribes, those residing in eastern and northeastern districts, and those who smoked. This study underscores the crucial determinants of hypertensive prevalence and of lower awareness and treatment utilization among women in India. Given these identified risk factors and vulnerabilities, targeted interventions such as tobacco control, diabetes management, women’s health education, community-based group formation, identification of vulnerable regions, outreach initiatives, and awareness campaigns need to be prioritized by policymakers and public health practitioners to reduce the NCD burden and improve awareness and treatment accessibility in India.
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