Tlie]oirr~tnl of the Egyptian Publtc Henlfh Associnltorl (IEPHAss.), Vo1.80, NU.l, 2, 2005 Women Health in Poor Urban Settings in Alexandria Ibrahim F Kharboush," Adel A YousseP*, Mohamed M MakhlouP, Ashraf A Zaghloul,**Ashraf A Abd El-Hamid,* Abdel Ghany M El Masry*** * Faruily Healtlr L)epnrtmerzt, High lrl~ritutc~ c!f'P~lblrc Healtlz. +,'' Hc~alth Adr?lrrzl~tr~~riotz and Plarznin~ arztl Behrrviorul Scieizces Depurmzent. High I1z.stitute oj Public Health. "* Tropic.czl Health Departnzent, High 1rl.stitlrre of Public Heulth. ABSTRACT The aim of this paper is to investigate women health and status as well as to study gender gap in three poor urban settings in Alexandria. Poor families were identified and invited to participate in the study through the help of local informants. The study included 172 families, 53 from Abu- Kir, 57 from El-Dahreya and 62 from Wadi El-Kamar area. An interviewing questionnaire was used to collect data form the wives as well as their husbands about household family members. Wives and husbands who participated in the study were clinically examined. Their weight and height were measured. For those who accepted to participate, stool, urine and blood analyses were performed. Female to male comparison as well as sex ratio of some parameters were used to investigate gender gap. Results showed that females were the head of the family in 19.8% of the families. In 18 % , of the families, wives participated in the family income. Illiteracy represented 94.2% among females aged 45+ years, and unemployment was 97.4%. The rate of ill health increased with age from 36% for girls to 90%, among older women (45+) compared to 71% among older males. Cardiovascular and orthopedic disorders represented the most reported problems among older females and males. Diarrhea and ARI episodes were rather more frequent among females than among males. Correspondence to: Dr. Ibrahim F. Kharboush, High Institute of Public Health. E-mail: Ibrahirnkharboush@yahoo.com