Abstract
Drug trafficking has become the main factor in the escalation of violence and one of the greatest obstacles to the success of public health services in slums. Brazil ranks number one in the world as the country with the most years of life lost through violence. Brazilian slums emerged in the hills of Rio de Janeiro in the early 20th century and were built by former slaves. In the last decades, the speed of their growth has intensified. Between 2000 and 2010, the growth of slums was twelve times higher than the annual increase in Brazilian households. The number of people living in these conditions (61% Afro-Brazilians) increased from 6.5 million in 2000 to more than 14 million in 2010. São Paulo houses 27% of all the slums in Brazil. Since the 2000s, these communities have been occupied by poor workers (65% with work permits) who do not have a sufficient income to pay rent. Approximately 2 million people reside in the slums of São Paulo. These territories have the highest prevalence of malnutrition among children caused by unhealthy housing and the highest prevalence of adult obesity caused by the consumption of low-cost, ultraprocessed foods. The coexistence of these two diseases constitutes a double burden for health intervention and greatly increases the cost of implementing public policies. This article provides evidence that violence is increasing the negative neighborhood effects in Brazilian slums, a condition that implies more complex and targetet interventions in these territories.
Keywords:
Slums; Violence; Health; Neighborhood effects; Health assistance; Territory; Poverty