To celebrate Women’s History month, the Family Caregiver Alliance posted 27 facts about women in caregiving. It creates a great opportunity to discuss the role of female caregivers, and how women and men are impacted differently. According to AARP, 65% of women are caregivers, so despite some indications otherwise, the majority of women continue to be caregivers, and this fact holds true worldwide, with the FCA citing information from all over the globe.
All caregivers are affected physically by their experience, but female caregivers seem to especially feel the negative impacts of caregiving. The FCA post cites a study by Bowling Green State University that states there is an increased incidence of negative experiences reported by female caregivers. These negative experiences as well as the emotions involved with caregiving put women at a higher risk for other illnesses. According to the article, women who suffer from depressive symptoms are twice as likely to develop dementia or cognitive impairments.
Financially, the cost to female caregivers is insurmountable. According to the FCA and a Met Life analysis, 50-year-old female caregivers will lose $142,693 in wages, $131, 351 in social security benefits and $50,000 in pension benefits. Comparatively, men will lose $283, 716 in wages, social security and pension benefits.
More astonishing facts and figures about female caregivers can be found in the article here.
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