Back to Annual Meeting

Back to Annual Meeting

Abstract #160632

Tiago A. Coelho de Souza, BDS, MDS, College of Public Health, University of Kentucky, 700 Woodland Avenue F107, Lexington, KY 40508, 859 3232671, souza_tiago@hotmail.com

The conceptions and practices of health in social groups are influenced by the cultural values of the population. To respect communities' views about the health-disease process and to know how to work with these values are the cornerstones to building an effective health program. At the Brazilian Amazon rainforest live 684 individuals from a Tupi-Guarani group called Wajapi. Although, the trajectory of contact with the Brazilian national society has been ongoing since the 70's, only since 2001 have the Wajapi received a systematic oral health program. The purpose of this study was to develop educational oral health materials that respect the cultural beliefs of this population and to discuss their alimentary changes as well the potential threats to oral health. The study utilized an action research method, the first step of which was to use interviews to understand the Wajapi's conceptions about cosmology, oral health habits and alimentary patterns. Then, the author developed workshops with the community agents of health to discuss and to build appropriate educational oral health materials that these agents could use to work more closely with the community. Among the main findings, the study highlighted several forest sources that were used by the ancient Wajapi and that have been forgotten by the young generation because of the influence of the Western oral health techniques. Also, the study demonstrated that the intensification of the contact with the Brazilian national society introduced the wage payment practice, provided habits changes, and influenced the consumption of industrialized food.

Learning Objectives:

• To discuss how to develop educational materials in oral health that respects cultural beliefs; To describe alimentary changes at the Wajapi indigenous people in Brazil; To analyze the oral health status of these population.

Keywords: Oral Health, Indigenous Populations

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Any relevant financial relationships? No
Any institutionally-contracted trials related to this submission?

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.