The problem of
infertility has not given its due attention in India because it is not a
life-threatening condition. Infertility is a life crisis with invisible losses,
and its consequences aremanifold
Infertility means not
being able to become pregnant after a year of trying. If a woman can get
pregnant but keeps having miscarriages or stillbirths, that's also called
infertility.
Infertility is fairly
common. After one year of having unprotected sex, about 15 percent of couples
are unable to get pregnant. About a third of the time, infertility can be
traced to the woman. In another third of cases, it is because of the man. The
rest of the time, it is because of both partners or no cause can be found.
Etiology of infertility
varies from region to region and from one population to another and even from
one locality to another within the same population. Childlessness has serious
demographic, social and health implications. Hence an attempt has been made to
get some approximation about levels and patterns of infertility and
childlessness in India by using National Family Health Survey-2 (1998-1999) and
National Family Health Survey-3 (2005-2006) data. The study population consists
of women aged 20-49 years married for ≥ 5 years. Age of women, age at first
marriage, place of residence, standard of living, working status of women, and
region are some of the variables related with the rate of infertility and
childlessness. Infertility rate is high among women in urban areas. This may be
due to lifestyle or a later age at first marriage. Considering religion,
Muslims show the lowest infertility rate. Scheduled tribes have high
infertility rate. With increasing levels of educational attainment among women,
infertility rate increases. This can be related to the fact that with
aspirations for attaining higher educational level, marriage is delayed as a
result of which in confirmation with aforementioned causation factors (higher
age at marriage, urban living style etc.), infertility rate is high among this
sub group of population.
Today, around 15 per
cent of the Indian population, both male and female, are infertile. Though in
general the percentage of male infertility is on the rise, it cannot be avoided
that both men and women in cities are prone to infertility due to their working
style, said Dr Sunita
Shishodia, Director Obstetrics and Gynaecology, at Cocoon
Jaipur.
“We see a lot of cases
of infertility on a monthly basis and every time we see that the complexity of
infertility increases. Male infertility is mainly due to intoxication, it could
be environmental or their lifestyle habits. While female infertility is due to
disorders like polycystic ovaries or endometriosis that contributes to 25 per
cent of infertility,” she said.
“When women are exposed
to too much stress their hypothalamus is affected due to which they face
irregular periods, which could also be due to PCOD, a disorder that is often
found in women these days. Late marriages also contribute to this problem. So
it is advised that women who are facing erratic changes in their menstrual
cycle to consult a gynecologist at the earliest to prevent infertility,” said Dr Shishodia, who assures
that the infertility could be treated.
She further said that
the problem was more prevalent among the working class, especially those
working in the IT sector. Reason: Psycho-sexual stress, which tends to be high
in career-oriented people.Doctors who are pursuing their MD at PGI are aged
between 25 and 30 years, which is considered to be the most fertile age. But,
excessive working hours, stress and peer pressure does not allow them to lead a
happy family life. She added that the problem was similar with city residents
in every profession.
The menstrual cycle of
women usually starts at the age of 13 and goes on till 50 years, and the
fertility life span is from 18 to 35 years. Thus, 12 to 13 years before
menopause, fertility is practically lost, and hardly 6-7 per cent women can
conceive. After a person crosses the age of 30, fertility starts decreasing,
and after 35 it decreases drastically.
Dr. SunitaShishodia
Director,Obstetrics and
Gynecology
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