The study examined the relationship between religion and the high rate of undernourishment among children. It also sheds light on women‘s autonomy and their control over household finances.
Informed by in-depth interviews in urban and rural Kerala, with lower-caste Hindus and upper-caste Hindus, Muslims, and Protestant households, as well as religious leaders, the study examined the relationship between religion and the high rate of undernourishment among children. It also sheds light on women‘s autonomy and their control over household finances, as well as their preference for a male child. This contributed to findings of the rate of stunting and wasting in children, addressing the concern that economic growth cannot be sustained without accompanying improvements in the health sector of young children.