Healthy Bodies in Latin America

Anthropologists today, study the different perspectives of the human body between modern westernized civilizations and indigenous peoples. "The concept of body image consists of an attitudinal and perceptual dimension." (An exploration of attitudinal and perceptual dimensions of body image among male and female adolescents from six Latin America cities). Today body image throughout Latin America and the Caribbean is a melting pot of traditional ingenious ideas as well as modern ideas. Also traditional ideas of healing are also increasingly popular in western society.

For example the indigenous group the Aymara of Bolivia view their bodies as a reflection of a high mountain dwelling. This is important is important topographical- hydraulic model. Under this model they see the human body as in three different levels which include flesh and blood from the center of the body. Tier one includes head,eyes and the mouth. Tier two: the stomach and heart. Tier three: the legs and toenails. They see illness as a result of violating cultural norms. In addition this relationship is tied back into the mountain in that if they are careless in the planting the season the earth yield the resources that they need. They use two healing processes the first being to have healers "feed the earth" by nourishing the earth. The second is to use medicinal herbs as discussed in previous blogs to restore circulation. As noted before Tuberculosis is a rapidly growing epidemic in Latin America and the Caribbean. The Liquichado is the indigenous equivalent of Tuberculosis. The Aymara view this illness as a result of losing essential fat as a consequence of vicious actions of others.

Local Aymara Woman

Body image in the Caribbean as illustrated by Jamaican women is drastically different from the Aymara. For example rural Jamaican women view their as being porous, which makes it important to clean their bodies regularly. People who are overweight are said to be generous and healthy as a result of this idea, while those underweight have experienced the opposite. This idea is also elsewhere in the Caribbean "the perception of the Trinidadian adolescent that obesity was associated with wealth, and to a lesser extent happiness... were causes for concern."(European Journal of Clinical Nutrition) Body temperatures are also important because if a body temperature is to one extreme they will also have an unhealthy lifestyle. Like the Aymara they view sickness as being a result of the vicious actions of the community.

Source:
An exploration of attitudinal and perceptual dimensions of body image among male and female adolescents from six Latin America cities. - Laura McArthur, 2005
http://eric.ed.gov/ERICWebPortal/custom/portlets/recordDetails/detailmini.jsp?_nfpb=true&_&ERICExtSearch_SearchValue_0=EJ725089&ERICExtSearch_SearchType_0=no&accno=EJ725089

European Journal of Clinical Nutrition- http://www.nature.com/ejcn/journal/v57/n1/full/1601515a.html

Folk Illnesses of the Indigenous Peoples of Latin America and the Caribbean

A folk illness is an illness that is brought about by cultural conventions rather than by physiological factors. The illnesses often have religious or physiological overtones. Folk illnesses were very prominent in Latin America and the Caribbean and there are around ten known illnesses. The most prominent of these were Susto, Mal de Ojo, and Nervios.

Susto can be literally translated into English as “fright”. The symptoms of this illness include: loss of appetite, listlessness, lack of interest or motivation in daily activities, apathy, nausea, diarrhea, irritability, weakness, and withdrawal. This illness can affect any age or gender. It can be induced by any form of anxiety that can be brought by emotional pain, such as violent encounter, potential argument, or an unhappy event. A more severe form of susto is espanto, meaning “terror” or “intense fright”. This extreme case of Susto can often times lead to death and is brought on traumatic situations, which are attributed to “soul loss” in the indigenous populations.

A second prominent folk illness to the indigenous peoples was Mal de Ojo, which is translated to mean “evil eye”. Symptoms of this illness are very similar to those of Susto but can also include high fever and constant crying in children. Mal de Ojo transpires due to extreme envy or jealously, which may be deliberate or unintentional. Those who are of good health are higher risk of contracting this illness. It is thought that by shielding children or others of lower class from the gaze of jealousy, will ensure their protection against the illness.

The final folk illness that was most prominent to the indigenous peoples was Nervios, translated to mean “the attack of the nerves”. This illness is identified with such symptoms as: heightened sense of irritability, shakiness, dizziness, occasional fainting or loss of consciousness, crying, trembling and bouts of violence. These symptoms in addition to the loss of emotional and bodily control are what separate this illness from the several others. Nervios is brought about when people are unable to handle the stresses of daily life. Along with the challenges of everyday stress come about the emotional side effects of nervios, which include: depression, screaming, and anger. Characteristically the indigenous people who suffer with this illness the most frequently are those of lower class and disenfranchised members of society. Women are more susceptible to this illness and are in turn more likely to die as a result of this disease. People who contract this disease have social tensions, disruptions in family support systems, and other social pressures that affect their daily life.

http://www.popline.org/docs/0383/681401.html

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,324552,00.html

Sources:

Sanabria, Harry. The Anthropology of Latin America and the Caribbean . Boston, MA: Pearson: Allyn
and Bacon, 2007. 

http://altmed.creighton.edu/MexicanFolk/Susto.htm

http://altmed.creighton.edu/MexicanFolk/mal_de_ojo.htm

http://www.springerlink.com/content/13u675x554482212/?p=f3d12b5f51954420a9d5bbe3beebc0dc&pi=4

Poor Health of Latin America and the Caribbean

Every society has a medical system in which they are able to diagnose and treat illnesses. There are three types of medical anthropology: Ethnomedicine, Biomedicine, and Critical Medical Anthropology. Ethnomedicine is culturally specific non western societies. This is practiced throughout Latin America and the Caribbean.

The poor health of Latin America and the Caribbean directly correlates to the sub-standard living conditions which the majority of the population lives. Such conditions include limited access to or safe sanitation practices. For example 30 of the 33 Latin American countries have a higher male mortality rate than the United States. The highest being Haiti with 493 compared to the United States with 140. It should be noted that countries with a higher percentage of GDP used towards there health care have more physicians per household. The spread of diseases throughout Latin America and the Caribbean is a result of poverty and inequality, Latin America has big gaps in the social system. This is because under sub-standard living conditions, people have weakened immune systems which makes eases the spread of diseases.

Sanabria discusses in his book, The Anthropology of Latin America and the Caribbean that over half the population of Latin America is poor due to a high concentration of wealth in only 10% of households.

HIV/AIDS is the fastest spreading infectious disease in Latin America, only second in the world to sub-Sahara Africa. According the the CIA world fact book: There was a prevalence rate of HIV/AIDS or 0.5 percent in Peru in 2003 with 5,000 peopled who died from HIV/AIDS. This is significantly more than the United States, who had a rate of 0.3% and had only 4,200 deaths. According to the database Peru had a very high risk of disease. Such diseases that posed a threat were bacterial diarrhea, hepatitis A and typhoid.

http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/COUNTRIES/LACEXT/0,,contentMDK:21283043~menuPK:258569~pagePK:2865106~piPK:2865128~theSitePK:258554,00.html

http://www.thebody.com/index/whatis/demo_latinam.html

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,324552,00.html