3 reasons why old age is a bigger curse for women than men

By Sunil Saxena

There is little doubt that old age is a curse. But have you realised that it is a bigger curse for women than men.

The first reason is widowhood. Women live longer than men, and this adds to their old age woes.  According to the projections in The India Ageing Report, 2023 the ratio of older women per 1,000 older men in 2021 stood at 1,061. This was higher as compared to 2011 when the ratio was 1,033 per 1,000 older men.

Further, this disparity in lifespans is projected to increase to 1,078 by 2031.

The socio-economic fallout of this growing difference in lifespans is heartbreaking for women. Longer life expectancy among women means that they are more vulnerable to losing their spouses in old age, an age when they need their male partners the most.

The gap, as brought out by the Longitudinal Ageing Study, popularly referred to as LASI, is stark. According to this report, 54 percent of women over the age of 60 had lost their spouses. As against this, the percentage of widowers was 16%.

If this was not bad enough, the comparison became even more heartbreaking among elders above the age of 80. The widowhood percentage among women jumped to 87%; in contrast 37 % men who were left single.

The second reason is poverty. Most Indian women, especially in rural areas, don’t have a steady source of income. Once their husbands pass away they are left largely at the mercy of their families.

Often, the elderly women are forced to pick up menial jobs. Most of these jobs are in the informal or the unorganised sector such as that of maids, farm hands or construction workers.  However, the nature of these jobs is such that with age women find it harder to continue.

The third curse is health. Sickness and disease overtake women as they age. Their ability to perform activities of daily living declines, and their dependence on family members grows. Often, this leads to emotional abuse, sometimes physical abuse also.

Elderly men too suffer similar indignities. But because of their longer lifespans the suffering of women is much more than that of men.

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