Expert warns of rising health risks among women amid economic pressure

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“These are everyday women who may not realise the level of strain their bodies are under,” she said, emphasising the need for increased awareness and early intervention.

Ibude attributed the trend to a combination of poor nutrition, persistent stress, and limited access to healthcare services, factors she said are more pronounced among women who often prioritise family and household needs over their own health.

She called for greater attention to preventive healthcare, improved access to nutrition, and targeted support systems to address the growing burden, warning that without intervention, the trend could place additional pressure on public health outcomes.

"Women are natural caregivers, so when there is financial pressure, they tend to sacrifice their own well-being first, eating less nutritious food, skipping meals so others can eat, or ignoring early signs of health issues because there is simply no bandwidth to address them," Ibude said. "What worries me is that this is not seen as a sacrifice. It is seen as normal, and that normalization is exactly what makes it so dangerous."

Ibude, who has over six years of experience in dietetics and nutrition science and two years as a mental health first aider, noted that the physical consequences of this pattern are both immediate and long-term. Prolonged financial stress, she explained, triggers hormonal imbalances that elevate blood pressure and place sustained strain on the heart, increasing the risk of hypertension, cardiovascular disease, and related complications.

"Stress is not just emotional; it has serious physical consequences. When a woman is constantly worried about money, feeding her family, or meeting basic needs, her body remains in a heightened state of alert. Over time, that damages the heart," she said.

Beyond cardiovascular health, Ibude highlighted a growing but largely invisible mental health burden. Anxiety and depression, she said, are becoming increasingly prevalent among women facing economic hardship, yet they go unrecognized and untreated, in part because the women experiencing them have learned to absorb the weight and call it something else.

"We are seeing more women who are overwhelmed, fatigued, and emotionally drained, but they do not recognize these as symptoms that need professional attention. They simply see it as part of their daily struggle," she noted.

She added that poor dietary habits linked to financial constraints worsen both outcomes. Inadequate intake of essential nutrients, including omega-3 fatty acids, B vitamins, and minerals, impairs brain function and destabilizes mood, further deepening the mental health crisis.

Taken together, Ibude described a feedback loop that is difficult to escape without deliberate support: financial stress leads to poor nutrition, poor nutrition worsens both physical and mental health, and deteriorating health in turn intensifies stress, reducing a woman's capacity to cope, earn, and seek help.

"Without awareness and support, many women remain trapped in this loop," she said. "They endure it quietly, year after year, until the damage becomes very hard to reverse."

Ibude called on policymakers to treat this as the public health emergency it is, urging that nutrition support and mental health services be embedded within social welfare programs as a matter of priority, not as add-ons, but as core components. She also advocated for community-based interventions that make healthy food options and mental health resources accessible and affordable at the grassroots level.

To women navigating these pressures directly, she offered practical counsel: mindful eating within whatever budget is available, stress management, and leaning on trusted personal networks for emotional support. She also urged women to reframe how they interpret their own exhaustion.

"Feeling constantly overwhelmed or drained is not just part of life; it is your body telling you something. Please listen to it," she said.

Ibude closed with a broader charge to society at large, warning that the cost of inaction extends well beyond individual women. "Healthy women build healthy homes. If we ignore the impact of economic hardship on women's health, we are indirectly weakening the very foundation of our society, and that is a price none of us can afford to pay."