ANTHROPOLOGY, HEALTH AND DISEASE - THE HEALTH TRANSITION AMONG THE INDIGENOUS POPULATIONS OF VANUIRE

Abstract

Most chronic health problems, such as obesity, are associated with the transition from lifestyles linked to tribal livelihoods to urban, city-like styles. And health problems come, notably, from changes in diet, levels of physical activity, among other factors. The central question of this article, in fact, is to know whether in the transitional framework in which the Amerindian populations of the Vaunire Indigenous Land find themselves, the rates of overweight and obesity of the adult population would express this transition in lifestyles. The hypothesis is that non-infectious diseases, such as obesity, would be more prevalent in localities with a more urban lifestyle, and less prevalent where traditional indigenous subsistence activities and lifestyles predominate. The objective is, therefore, to present and analyze the nutritional profile of adult indigenous people from the Vanuire Indigenous Land, aged 20 to 60 years, registered in the database of the Food and Nutrition Surveillance System (SISVAN), in the municipality of Arco-íris, State of São Paulo. From the methodological point of view, this is a descriptive research that uses bibliographic data and official databases: SISVAN and the Brazilian Institute of Statistics and Geography (IBGE). The results found clearly show the trend of increasing obesity, especially in its most severe degrees, clearly confirming the hypothesis of the article.