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WOMEN’S HEALTH ISSUES: AN OVERVIEW

May, 2000

BACKGROUND

A woman’s life expectancy has increased from 48.3 years in 1900 to 79.4
years in 19971. Today, our challenge is to make those extra years of life
healthy and productive. Women represent 51 percent of the total U.S. population, 59
percent of the over-65 population, and 71 percent of Americans older than age 852—the
fastest growing segment of the population. Women also constitute 46 percent of the
Nation’s workforce3. They make up 52 percent of the voting-age population,
and are more likely to turn out and vote than men in national elections (55.5 percent of
women vs. 52.8 percent of men voted in 1996)4.

A woman’s health reflects both her individual biology and her sociocultural,
economic, and physical environments. These factors affect both the duration and the
quality of her life. For example, the average life expectancy for a woman varies
considerably according to her race: in 1997, the average life expectancy for white women
was 5 years longer than that of African American women (80 versus 75 years). Women who
live in poverty or have less than a high school education have shorter life spans, higher
rates of illness, injury, disability, and death, and more limited access to high-quality
health care services5.

Women have also historically been the primary health care providers and health
decision-makers for their families. Nearly two-thirds of women polled in a recent national
survey indicated that they alone were responsible for health care decisions within their
family and 83 percent had sole or shared responsibility for financial decisions regarding
their family’s health6. Women are also the primary care givers for ill or
disabled family members. Of the estimated 15 percent of Americans who are informal care
givers, an estimated 72 percent are women — many of them sandwiched between caring
for an ailing relative and caring for their own children7.
MEDICAL RESEARCH

Medical research until recently has largely ignored many health issues important to
women, and women have long been under-represented in clinical trials. Research on
women’s health in the past has focused on diseases affecting fertility
and reproduction,
while many studies on other diseases have focused on men. For the most part, women
currently receive diagnoses and treatment based on what has worked for men. However, the
efforts of women’s health advocates and unveiling of inequities in medical research
have led to a broadened research agenda that is beginning to yield insights into the
health-related similarities and differences between men and women.

**[Next Section] [Endnotes]**
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