Over 44% Kerala men think women who use contraceptives are promiscuous: Survey

Kerala has the highest percentage of men in the country who think that women who use contraception may become promiscuous. This came out in the recently released National Family Health Survey (NFHS-5) 2019-21, India Report, of the Union health ministry.

The chapter related to men’s contraception shows that 44.1 per cent of men in Kerala agree that women who use contraception may become promiscuous. The Union Territories of Chandigarh and Lakshadweep (43.7 per cent) and the state of Punjab are the only other regions in the country with 40 per cent or above men who agree with this.

Nationally, only 19.6 per cent of men the agree with this statement.

Middle-aged men see a connection

In Kerala, men aged between 45-49 and 30-34 are more likely to support this statement. The lowest percentage of Kerala men who agree with the connection between licentious behaviour and the use of birth control was found among the youngest age group (15-19).

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Among caste and tribes, men belonging to other backward class have the highest percentage who agree with this statement, while scheduled tribe men have the lowest percentage who correlated promiscuity and contraception.

The survey results show that education hardly plays a part in shaping such thoughts. The highest percentage of men in Kerala (46.4 per cent) who attribute promiscuity to contraception in women have completed 12 or more years of schooling. Religion-wise, Hindu men have the highest percentage who agree with this perception.

Hardly surprising

Public health specialists say that this kind of perception among men in Kerala is hardly surprising. “There is a glorified idea about Malayalee sensibility. The truth is that Kerala men are not so distinct from other men in the country,” Dr Mohan Roy, psychiatrist and RMO, Medical college, Thiruvananthapuram, told The Times of India.

The finding has left gynaecologists puzzled. “When we talk to couples, husbands are more concerned about the chance of reversibility while using contraceptives and how it is going to affect the health of women. The promiscuity factor seldom comes in,” the newspaper quoted Dr Jayasree V Vaman, Professor in Obstetrics & Gynaecology, Govt Medical college, Alleppey.

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