The Impact of Early Marriage on Women's Reproductive Health in Slums

Though in Bangladesh the legal minimum age of marriage is 18 for girls and 21 for boys, a large proportion of marriages still occur before the legal age which creates a very negative impact on reproductive health status of women. This study aims to determine the impact of early marriage on the reproductive health status of the early married women in slum areas under Khulna City Corporation of Bangladesh. Simple random sampling technique was applied to collect data from the field. Data were collected from 150 respondents through surveys method using a structured interview schedule, in face-to-face situation. The findings of this study explicate that the majority of the women of study area, based on sample investigation, are not aware of the concept of early marriage and reproductive health. Data reveals that almost 32 percent respondents are illiterate. All the respondents were married before 18 years and they had little preference over the decision of marriage. Most of the respondents delivered their first child before 15 years old. Above, 50 percent respondents didn't get any types of medical facility from the health personnel.

Autorentext

The author is a student of Masters in Sociology from Khulna University of Bangladesh. The present study is a modified research work for publication along with co-author. The author is mainly interested in social research.