Low prevalence of anemia among Shuar communities of Amazonian Ecuador

Abstract

Objective Anemia is an important global health challenge. We investigate anemia prevalence among Indigenous Shuar of Ecuador to expand our understanding of population‐level variation, and to test hypotheses about how anemia variation is related to age, sex, and market integration. Methods Hemoglobin levels were measured in a total sample of 1650 Shuar participants (ages 6 months to 86 years) from 46 communities between 2008 and 2017 to compare anemia prevalence across regions characterized by different levels of market integration. Results Shuar anemia rates among children under 15 years (12.2%), adult women (10.5%), and adult men (5.3%) were less than half of those previously documented in other neo‐tropical Indigenous populations. Anemia prevalence did not vary between more traditional and market integrated communities (OR = 0.47, p = .52). However, anemia was negatively associated with body mass index (OR = 0.47, p = .002). Conclusions Compared to other South American Indigenous populations, anemia prevalence is relatively low among Shuar of Ecuador and invariant with market integration. Understanding this pattern can provide valuable insights into anemia prevention among at‐risk populations.

Bringing the lab bench to the field: Point‐of‐care testing for enhancing health research and stakeholder engagement in rural/remote, indigenous, and resource‐limited contexts

“…Ongoing projects such as the Tsimane Health and Life History Project, Shuar Health and Life History Project, and research among the Hadza of Tanzania and Toba of Argentina, among others, have offered insight into issues related to reproduction, aging, and skeletal health (e.g., Madimenos et al, 2012; Madimenos et al, 2020; Stieglitz et al, 2016), life history trade‐offs and growth (e.g., Blackwell et al, 2010; Gurven et al, 2017; Gurven et al, 2021; Urlacher et al, 2016) including trade‐offs among different branches of immunity (e.g., Blackwell et al, 2011), and socioeconomic and epidemiological transitions (e.g., Lagranja et al, 2015; Liebert et al, 2013; Pontzer et al, 2018). One example includes research by DeLouize and colleagues (2022) who gathered hemoglobin data for a large sample of >1600 Indigenous Amazonian participants (aged 6 months to 86 years) using a HemoCue Hb201+ analyzer. Their results show that prevalence of anemia, a serious global health problem, is relatively low compared to other South American populations and comparable to European and Canadian rates.…”

Minimally invasive biomarkers in human and non‐human primate evolutionary biology: Tools for understanding variation and adaptation

“…In this regard, point‐of‐care (POC) measurement technologies hold promise. Some POC technologies are already regularly used to measure MIBs in HEB research, including dipstick urine test strips to detect the presence of ketones and metabolic stress (e.g., Knott, 1998 ; Muller & Wrangham, 2005 ; Naumenko et al, 2020 ) and portable photometric and electrochemical devices that use finger‐prick blood to measure circulating hemoglobin, glucose, and blood lipids (e.g., DeLouize et al, 2022 ; Levy et al, 2018 ; Liebert et al, 2013 ; Raichlen et al, 2017 ). However, as discussed by Gildner et al in their recent review of POC technology (Gildner et al, 2021 ), barriers to POC application remain, including a general lack of device validations performed under typical HEB field conditions.…”

Prevalence of anemia among Indigenous children in Latin America: a systematic review

“…De Louize et al carried out the most recent data collection on the prevalence of anemia in indigenous communities in 2017 45 , followed by two articles that collected data in 2013 23,57 ; all other studies collected data before 2013. Thirteen studies did not specify the date of data collection.…”