Document Type

Article

Publication Date

9-27-2022

Publication Title

American Journal Of Human Biology

Volume

34

Issue

12

Pages

e23805

Publisher Name

Wiley Periodicals LLC

Abstract

ObjectivesThis study examines the associations between water insecurity, self-reported physical health, and objective measures of biological health among 225 Awajún adults (107 women; 118 men) living in the Peruvian Amazon, a “water-abundant” region.MethodsA survey, which included multiple measures of self-reported physical health, and objective measures of biological health such as blood pressure and nutritional and immune biomarkers.ResultsGreater water insecurity was associated with multiple measures of self-reported physical health, including higher incidence of reported diarrhea, nausea, back pain, headaches, chest pain, fatigue, dizziness, overall poor perceived health, and “being sick.” These symptoms align with the physical strain associated with water acquisition and with drinking contaminated water. A significant association between higher water insecurity and lower systolic blood pressure emerged, which may be linked to dehydration. None of the other biomarkers, including those for nutrition, infection, and stress were significantly associated with water insecurity scores.ConclusionsThese analyses add to the growing body of research examining the associations between water insecurity and health. Biocultural anthropologists are well-positioned to continue probing these connections. Future research will investigate relationships between measures of water insecurity and biomarkers for gastrointestinal infection and inflammation in water-scarce and water-abundant contexts.

Comments

Author Posting © 2022 The Authors. American Journal of Human Biology published by Wiley Periodicals LLC.

https://doi.org/10.1002/ajhb.23805

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License

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