Abstract
BackgroundThe raising prevalence of weight excess and of non-communicable diseases in indigenous populations, as well as changes in food consumption and reduction in the frequency and intensity of physical activity, suggest that the prevalence of metabolic syndrome (MS) is also elevated. The objective of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of MS and the frequency of its components in the Xavante adult population living in the Indian reservations of São Marcos and Sangradouro/Volta Grande, in the state of Mato Grosso, Brazil. A cross-sectional study was carried out among 932 Xavante Indians aged 20 years or more, in the 2008–2012 period. The variables analysed were gender, age, weight, height, waist circumference, blood pressure, initial and 2-h capillary glycemia in a 75 g OGTT, levels of triglycerides and HDL-cholesterol. The diagnostic criteria for MS proposed by the IDF and AHA/NHLBI were used.ResultsThe prevalence of MS was 66.1 % (95 % CI 63.0–69.2), being 76.2 % (95 % CI 72.4–80.0) in women and 55.6 % (95 % CI 51.0–60.2) in men. Women had higher prevalence of MS in all age groups. Elevated waist circumference and lower levels of HDL-cholesterol were the more frequent components in those with MS, and elevated blood pressure was the less frequent.ConclusionsThe high prevalence of MS in the Xavante Indians is mainly due to the increased prevalence of weight excess that resulted from an intense change in their life-style, in a short period of time in a population with a genetic predisposition. These findings highlight the magnitude of this health problem and make an alert about the necessity to implement specific preventive interventions.
Highlights
The raising prevalence of weight excess and of non-communicable diseases in indigenous popula‐ tions, as well as changes in food consumption and reduction in the frequency and intensity of physical activity, sug‐ gest that the prevalence of metabolic syndrome (MS) is elevated
The Xavante Indians belong to the Macro-Jê linguistic group and live in a broad region of the Brazilian central plateau, known as “cerrado”, and have a low degree of admixture confirmed by genome-wide analysis [21]
Systolic and diastolic blood pressure, weight and height were higher in men
Summary
The raising prevalence of weight excess and of non-communicable diseases in indigenous popula‐ tions, as well as changes in food consumption and reduction in the frequency and intensity of physical activity, sug‐ gest that the prevalence of metabolic syndrome (MS) is elevated. The objective of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of MS and the frequency of its components in the Xavante adult population living in the Indian reserva‐ tions of São Marcos and Sangradouro/Volta Grande, in the state of Mato Grosso, Brazil. Hunter-gatherers, and due to conflicts with newcomer farmers, they started to be settled in delimitated areas in a process that started in 1957 This new Soares et al Diabetol Metab Syndr (2015) 7:105 condition produced important changes in their lifestyle, became more sedentary and modified their traditional diet by incorporating new foods obtained in nearby cities or through food baskets donated by governmental agencies. Important changes have been observed in the nutritional and health profile of this population, including diseases, such as diabetes, that were previously unknown to them [4, 10, 16]
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