WASHINGTON — In the 1970s, there was an Enjoli perfume commercial showing a woman, clutching a fist full of money, who proclaimed she could bring home the bacon and fry it up in a pan.

The jingle with the ad empowered me. Whenever it aired, I would prance around singing it. That's right, even though I'm a woman, I can earn, spend, save and invest like any man.

But decades later, even though women have moved ahead financially, a number of studies and polls indicate we still have more to achieve and sometimes we impede our progress by our own doubts.

In a poll by the National Women's Law Center, women respondents were more likely than the men to feel that they are falling behind economically. They worry more about their financial future.

For many women, the concerns are not unfounded. More than 14 million women live in poverty. More than 17 million have no health insurance. On average, women still earn only 77 cents for every dollar paid to men.

Prudential Financial found in a study released this year that women tend to have clear financial priorities but little confidence in their ability to achieve those goals. Less than a quarter of women feel they are "very well" prepared to make financial decisions related to employee workplace benefits, retirement and other important financial planning matters.

In 2006, Allianz Life Insurance Company of North America commissioned a report to better understand how women handle their money. In the latest installment of the Allianz Women, Money and Power Study, the insurer found more than half of all women want to learn more about retirement planning and entry-level saving and investing.

All three of the studies offer recommendations to help women become better off financially.

In releasing its poll results, the National Women's Law Center called for a number of government initiatives including increasing the tax credit for low-earning families and providing healthcare coverage for all families.

Prudential and Allianz want women to hire financial professionals to help them manage their money.

I agree that our government needs to do more. And yes, a financial adviser can help you develop a good financial plan.

But really, ladies, more of us need to stop fearing all things financial or doubting we can manage this stuff.

To take control, start this way: