Opening the box: Intrahousehold food allocation in rural Nepal

Family, Gender, and Women's Nutritional Status: A Comparison Between Two Himalayan Communities in Nepal

“…Clearly, unequal patterns of intra-household allocation of food and subsequent disadvantageous female nutritional status among Thehe Hindu women was based on allocation according to the household maximization rule (Behrman 1990), drawing on cultural notions of gender bias inherent in this rigidly patrilineal joint family system. The findings of this study are somewhat different from Gittelsohn (1991) who found in another Hindu community in West Nepal that men were given foods that no other household members ate. This was not the case in Thehe; there were no gender differences in terms of allotted foodstuffs, but in terms of quantity and quality of food.…”

Family, Gender, and Women's Nutritional Status: A Comparison Between Two Himalayan Communities in Nepal

“…Clearly, unequal patterns of intra-household allocation of food and subsequent disadvantageous female nutritional status among Thehe Hindu women was based on allocation according to the household maximization rule (Behrman 1990), drawing on cultural notions of gender bias inherent in this rigidly patrilineal joint family system. The findings of this study are somewhat different from Gittelsohn (1991) who found in another Hindu community in West Nepal that men were given foods that no other household members ate. This was not the case in Thehe; there were no gender differences in terms of allotted foodstuffs, but in terms of quantity and quality of food.…”

Are Women in Rural India Really Consuming a Less Diverse Diet?

“…We find strong evidence that women consume less diverse diets than their households, and these findings are consistent across different study sites and definitions of diet diversity. Our findings on the existence of a dietary gap faced by women are in line with existing empirical evidence from different parts of the world that show a bias against women in intrahousehold food allocation (Hadley et al, 34 Gittelsohn, 35 Harris-Fry et al 36 ). Many factors have been identified to be associated with these gender differences in food allocation.…”

Do changes in women's household status in Nepal improve access to food and nutrition?

“…This suggests that, when there are not enough resources, these newly married women suffer. Our findings support previous studies that are almost 30 years old in Nepal which also found an intersection between food insecurity and order of household eating and force us to rethink the order of household eating as simply a way of showing respect—clearly it is also a marker of status and gender equality (Gittelsohn, 1991 ). A recent analysis of data from India found that women who eat last have worse mental health, suggesting that there could be additional health impacts of this practice (Hathi et al, 2021 ).…”

Family, Gender, and Women's Nutritional Status: A Comparison Between Two Himalayan Communities in Nepal

“…Clearly, unequal patterns of intra-household allocation of food and subsequent disadvantageous female nutritional status among Thehe Hindu women was based on allocation according to the household maximization rule (Behrman 1990), drawing on cultural notions of gender bias inherent in this rigidly patrilineal joint family system. The findings of this study are somewhat different from Gittelsohn (1991) who found in another Hindu community in West Nepal that men were given foods that no other household members ate. This was not the case in Thehe; there were no gender differences in terms of allotted foodstuffs, but in terms of quantity and quality of food.…”

Are Women in Rural India Really Consuming a Less Diverse Diet?

“…We find strong evidence that women consume less diverse diets than their households, and these findings are consistent across different study sites and definitions of diet diversity. Our findings on the existence of a dietary gap faced by women are in line with existing empirical evidence from different parts of the world that show a bias against women in intrahousehold food allocation (Hadley et al, 34 Gittelsohn, 35 Harris-Fry et al 36 ). Many factors have been identified to be associated with these gender differences in food allocation.…”

Do changes in women's household status in Nepal improve access to food and nutrition?

“…This suggests that, when there are not enough resources, these newly married women suffer. Our findings support previous studies that are almost 30 years old in Nepal which also found an intersection between food insecurity and order of household eating and force us to rethink the order of household eating as simply a way of showing respect—clearly it is also a marker of status and gender equality (Gittelsohn, 1991 ). A recent analysis of data from India found that women who eat last have worse mental health, suggesting that there could be additional health impacts of this practice (Hathi et al, 2021 ).…”

Family, Gender, and Women's Nutritional Status: A Comparison Between Two Himalayan Communities in Nepal

“…Clearly, unequal patterns of intra-household allocation of food and subsequent disadvantageous female nutritional status among Thehe Hindu women was based on allocation according to the household maximization rule (Behrman 1990), drawing on cultural notions of gender bias inherent in this rigidly patrilineal joint family system. The findings of this study are somewhat different from Gittelsohn (1991) who found in another Hindu community in West Nepal that men were given foods that no other household members ate. This was not the case in Thehe; there were no gender differences in terms of allotted foodstuffs, but in terms of quantity and quality of food.…”

Are Women in Rural India Really Consuming a Less Diverse Diet?

“…We find strong evidence that women consume less diverse diets than their households, and these findings are consistent across different study sites and definitions of diet diversity. Our findings on the existence of a dietary gap faced by women are in line with existing empirical evidence from different parts of the world that show a bias against women in intrahousehold food allocation (Hadley et al, 34 Gittelsohn, 35 Harris-Fry et al 36 ). Many factors have been identified to be associated with these gender differences in food allocation.…”

Do changes in women's household status in Nepal improve access to food and nutrition?

“…This suggests that, when there are not enough resources, these newly married women suffer. Our findings support previous studies that are almost 30 years old in Nepal which also found an intersection between food insecurity and order of household eating and force us to rethink the order of household eating as simply a way of showing respect—clearly it is also a marker of status and gender equality (Gittelsohn, 1991 ). A recent analysis of data from India found that women who eat last have worse mental health, suggesting that there could be additional health impacts of this practice (Hathi et al, 2021 ).…”