The Tsimane Health and Life History Project: Integrating anthropology and biomedicine

Gurven, Michael; Stieglitz, Jonathan; Trumble, Benjamin C.; Blackwell, Aaron D.; Beheim, Bret; Davis, Helen E.; Hooper, Paul L.; Kaplan, Hillard

doi:10.1002/evan.21515

Cited by 128 publications

(161 citation statements)

References 117 publications

(105 reference statements)

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“…Data for this study come from the Tsimane Health and Life History Project (THLHP, http://www.unm.edu/~tsimane), which has worked continuously with the Tsimane since 2002 (Gurven et al, 2016a). For the present study we utilize data on height and weight collected by the THLHP between 2002 and 2015.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Growth references for Tsimane forager‐horticulturalists of the Bolivian Amazon

Blackwell

Urlacher

Beheim

et al. 2016

American J Phys Anthropol

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Objectives Growth standards and references currently used to assess population and individual health are derived primarily from urban populations, including few individuals from indigenous or subsistence groups. Given environmental and genetic differences, growth may vary in these populations. Thus, there is a need to assess whether international standards are appropriate for all populations, and to produce population specific references if growth differs. Here we present and assess growth references for the Tsimane, an indigenous population of Bolivian forager-horticulturalists. Methods Mixed cross-sectional/longitudinal anthropometrics (9,614 individuals; 30,118 observations; ages 0–29 years) were used to generate centile curves and Lambda-Mu-Sigma (LMS) tables for height-for-age, weight-for-age, body mass index (BMI)-for-age, and weight-for-height (WFH) using Generalized Additive Models for Location Shape and Scale (GAMLSS). Velocity curves were generated using SuperImposition by Translation and Rotation (SITAR). Tsimane ≤5 years were compared World Health Organization (WHO) standards while those >5 years were compared to WHO school age references. All ages were compared to published references for Shuar forager-horticulturalists of the Ecuadorian Amazon. Results Tsimane growth differs from WHO values in height and weight, but is similar for BMI and WFH. Tsimane growth is characterized by slow height velocity in childhood and early adolescent peak height velocity at 11.3 and 13.2 years for girls and boys. Tsimane growth patterns are similar to Shuar, suggesting shared features of growth among indigenous South Americans. Conclusions International references for BMI-for-age and WFH are likely appropriate for Tsimane, but differences in height-for-age and weight-for-age suggest Tsimane specific references may be useful for these measures.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Growth references for Tsimane forager‐horticulturalists of the Bolivian Amazon

Blackwell

Urlacher

Beheim

et al. 2016

American J Phys Anthropol

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“…To our knowledge, this is one of the few cohort health studies to have been conducted in an indigenous population in South America. Others include a growth study of indigenous and nonindigenous girls in Chile's Araucanía Region (Amigo, Lara, Bustos, & Muñoz, ; Amigo, Vásquez, Bustos, Ortiz, & Lara, ) and a 9‐year panel study carried out among the Tsimane' indigenous people in Bolivia to access the impact of modernization and market exposure on overall health, nutrition, and perception of wellbeing (Gurven et al, ; Leonard et al, ). In Brazil, an ongoing prospective birth cohort study addresses social determinants of child respiratory health among the Guarani Mbya (Cardoso et al, ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Xavante Longitudinal Health Study in Brazil: Objectives, design, and key results

Welch

Ferreira

Tavares

et al. 2019

American J Hum Biol

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Objective The Xavante Longitudinal Health Study was developed to permit granular tracking of contemporary health challenges faced by indigenous communities in Brazil, taking into consideration ongoing historical processes that may be associated with increases in child undernutrition, adult obesity, and cardiovascular disease risks. Methods This was an open‐cohort study with six semiannual data collection waves from 2009 to 2012. The study was undertaken in two Xavante villages, Pimentel Barbosa and Etênhiritipá, State of Mato Grosso, Central Brazil. No sampling technique was used. Data collection placed emphasis on growth and nutrition of children under five and nutrition status, blood pressure, and blood glucose levels of adolescents and adults. Results Baseline data collection began in July/August 2009 with a population census (656 individuals). Between the first and final waves, the study population increased by 17%. At baseline, stunting and wasting was elevated for most age groups <10 years. Overweight, obesity, and increased risk of metabolic complications were expressive among individuals >17 years, disproportionately affecting females. Anemia was elevated in most age groups, especially among females. Mean systolic and diastolic blood pressure was moderate. The overall prevalence of high blood pressure was relatively low. Conclusions Our findings reveal marked health disparities relative to the Brazilian national population and a complex dietary health epidemiology involving the double burden of malnutrition, rapidly changing nutritional indicators, and elevated metabolic disease risk. The topically broad multidisciplinary focus permitted construction of the richest longitudinal data set of socio‐epidemiological information for an indigenous population in Brazil.

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“…The Tsimane Health and Life History Project (THLHP) is an ongoing longitudinal study conducting socio‐economic and demographic surveys continuously from 2002 to present among Bolivian Amerindians living in the Beni Department of Bolivia (Gurven et al, ). Broad aims of this project include improving the understanding of the impact of environment and evolution on the life course and focuses on health, ageing, economics, and biodemography in forager‐farmers practicing a traditional lifestyle.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Child nutritional status among births exceeding ideal family size in a high fertility population

Costa

Trumble

Kaplan

et al. 2018

Maternal & Child Nutrition

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Ideal family size (IFS) is measured in social surveys to indicate unmet need for contraception and impending shifts in fertility behaviour. Whether exceeding IFS affects parental behaviour in ways that result in lower investments in child nutrition, well-being, and educational attainment is not known. This study examines parental IFS and the association between exceeding stated ideals and child nutritional status in a high-fertility, high-mortality population in the Bolivian Amazon. Height-for-age z-scores, weight-for-age z-scores, weight-for-height z-scores, stunting, haemoglobin, and anaemia status in 638 children aged 0-5 years are predicted as a function of birth order in relation to parental IFS, adjusting for household characteristics and mother and child random effects. Children of birth orders above paternal IFS experience higher weight-for-age z-scores when living further away from the market town of San Borja, consistent with underlying motivations for higher IFS and lower human capital investment in children in more remote areas (β = .009, p = .027). Overall, we find no statistical evidence that birth orders in excess of parental ideals are associated with compromised child nutrition below age 2, a period of intensive breastfeeding in this population. Despite a vulnerability to nutritional deficiencies postweaning for children age 2-5, there was no association between birth order in excess of parental ideals and lower nutritional status. Further studies examining this association at various stages of the fertility transition will elucidate whether reported ideal or optimal family sizes are flexible as trade-offs between quality and quantity of children shift during the transition to lower fertility.

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The Tsimane Health and Life History Project: Integrating anthropology and biomedicine

Cited by 128 publications

References 117 publications

Growth references for Tsimane forager‐horticulturalists of the Bolivian Amazon

Growth references for Tsimane forager‐horticulturalists of the Bolivian Amazon

The Xavante Longitudinal Health Study in Brazil: Objectives, design, and key results

Child nutritional status among births exceeding ideal family size in a high fertility population

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