This article reports the results of a nutritional survey among Guarani indigenous children < 5 years of age in the States of Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo, Brazil. Prevalence rates for malnutrition according to various anthropometric indices were 50.4% (low stature-for-age), 7.9% (low weight-for-age), and 0.8% (low weight-for-stature). Prevalence of stunting in Guarani children was 96% higher than for indigenous children in Brazil as a whole (25.7%) and 7.2 times that in children from the general population (7%). Prevalence of anemia was 65.2%, 3.1 times higher than in non-indigenous children (20.9%). The study highlights the high prevalence of chronic undernutrition and anemia in Guarani children and calls attention to serious inequalities in health and nutrition that affect indigenous children in Brazil.
Indigenous Population; Child Health; Nutrition Surveys; Nutritional Status