The aim of this article is to get to know and understand the health needs, through one's self-perception of the state of health and disease, considering the social inequalities there are in the rural town of Rincão dos Maia, Canguçu, Rio Grande do Sul. The method triangulation approach was used. Twenty subjects were interviewed in the qualitative design. The sample was intentional, illustrative of the different life situations, and the analysis was thematic. The results indicated that the feeling of being ill is strongly tied to how one experiences the disease, in view of the inability this state brings about, whether physical or mental. Alternating between feeling sick or healthy comes from the practical verification of the fact that no state is continuous. Observing the natural environment signals just how tenuous the states of health and disease in fact are. The 'life situation,' compiled based on the living conditions and on the mobilization of social resources, showed that despite the economic differences, this group was socially cohese, especially in its farmer cultural matrix. The need to consider the meaning of the health and disease phenomenon as an indispensable tool to formulate health prevention and promotion programs for the rural population is therefore emphasized.
rural population health; public health; social inequality; health conditions