The Health Status of Indian Children: Problems and Prevention in Early Life

Abstract

The topic considered here is health for Indian children. By necessity, however, this paper focuses on death and disease patterns of Indian and Alaska Native children. The ages considered are from conception through 14 years. As was necessary in the treatment of this topic in Health and Behavior: Frontiers of Research in the Biobehavioral Sciences by the National Academy of Sciences (Hamburg, Elliott, & Parron, 1982), consideration will be given to some adult behaviors and some broader issues which affect the health of children. While limiting the focus to the youthful ages is difficult, in some ways arbitrary, and not a completely accurate representation of reality, it will hopefully serve a heuristic function. It should be particularly useful for the topic of prevention and will allow the health professional to focus far "upstream" to deal with many problems at the source. As will be evident below, a focus on the young is both needed and particularly appropriate for the American Indian population.

Accounting for Native/non-Native differences in IQ scores

“…Since other investigators have reported higher rates of ear infections among Native children as compared to non-Native youngsters (May, 1988), and have gone on to implicate hearing difficulties as an explanation for lowered IQ scores (Suzuki & Valencia, 1997), the results of the current study are a surprise. Not only do they fail to confirm previous claims, but the current results are in the opposite direction.…”

“…For example, diabetes, a condition that predisposes to toxemia of pregnancy (marked by excessive weight gain and hypertension) and that creates a risk for birth complications, is highly prevalent among Native women (May, 1988). Other health factors, such as otitis media, or middle ear infection, have been implicated as explanatory factors in studies of Native children's IQ (May, 1988;Suzuki & Valencia, 1997).…”

“…For example, diabetes, a condition that predisposes to toxemia of pregnancy (marked by excessive weight gain and hypertension) and that creates a risk for birth complications, is highly prevalent among Native women (May, 1988). Other health factors, such as otitis media, or middle ear infection, have been implicated as explanatory factors in studies of Native children's IQ (May, 1988;Suzuki & Valencia, 1997). Middle ear infections are believed to affect a disproportionately large number of Native children, to result in high levels of impaired hearing, and, in turn, to create learning difficulties and adversely affect IQ scores (May, 1988;McShane & Plas, 1982).…”

Indigenous People and the Social Work Profession: Defining Culturally Competent Services

“…There are roughly 2 million Native Americans in the United States (U.S. Bureau of the Census, 1993). Although their survival in the face of decimating diseases and destructive U.S. policies speaks to the resilience of indigenous cultures and peoples, they are greatly overrepresented in the child welfare system (Hogan & Siu, 1988;MacEachron, Gustavsson, Cross, & Lewis, 1996;Mannes, 1995;Wares, Wedel, Rosenthal, & Dobrec, 1994;Weaver & White, in press), suffer disproportionately from a variety of health problems (May, 1988;Parker, 1994;Stillman, 1992;Wuest, 1991), and are among the poorest people in the United States (Little Eagle, 1993;Stillman, 1992; U.S. Bureau of the Census, 1993). Practice with Native Americans clearly falls within the social work mandate to serve vulnerable and oppressed clients.…”

Mapping contexts for supporting American Indian families of youth with disabilities.

“…McShane (1982) and McShane and Plas (1982) reviewed over 100 studies concerning epidemic proportions of otitis media in Indian communities (50–75% of Indian children). Other high frequency, serious health problems include six times the number of vision problems among Indian children entering school and nutrition deficiencies (see May, 1985, and Davis, Hunt, & Kitzes, 1989, for reviews of Indian child health problems). The Adolescent Health survey of 25,000 Indian youth across the country has amply documented many of these serious health problems (Blum, Harmon, Harris, et al, 1992).…”