What husbands in northern India know about reproductive health: Correlatesof knowledge about pregnancy and maternal and sexual health

Women in India suffer from a high incidence of reproductive disease, disabi lity and death. Very little work has been done on men, but a much higher in cidence of sexual experience outside marriage and sexually transmitted dise ases (STDs) among males than previously expected for this population is now being documented. In north India, women ale dependent on their husbands an d other family members for health-related decisions. Therefore, the behavio ur, knowledge and attitudes of men are integral to the reproductive health status of couples there. This study explores knowledge about three distinct areas of reproductive health among 6549 married men in five districts of t he northern state of Uttar Pradesh, India. Factors contributing to men's kn owledge in the areas of fertility, maternal health and STDs were investigat ed. Results showed that very few men had basic knowledge in any of these ar eas. The likelihood of reporting knowledge was associated with a set of det erminants that differed in their magnitude and effect across the areas of r eproductive health explored. In particular, men's belief about the ability of an individual to prevent pregnancy demonstrated an independent associati on with men's knowledge. After controlling for factors such as age, parity and educational and economic status, men who believed it not possible to pr event a pregnancy were less likely to know when during the menstrual cycle women would become pregnant and certain facts about STDs, but they were mor e likely to be able to name two or more symptoms of serious maternal health conditions. Possible explanations for this trend are discussed.