(Trans)formações corporais: Reflexões sobre saúde e beleza

Abstract

This article discusses the interpretations of health, illness and beauty engendered in body transformation processes experienced by trans people. From a qualitative approach, 15 semi-structured interviews, recorded in digital audio, were performed with trans people living in the Metropolitan area of Vitória, Espírito Santo (ES), Brazil. Transcription and content analysis were performed. We observed that beauty appears directly related to the perceptions about health and illness among the participants. We also noticed major divergences between the concepts of health and illness produced by the biomedical powers and knowledge about trans people and those that trans people have about themselves, especially in specific health care programs such as the transexualizing processes. We conclude that the respect concerning the autonomy of trans people in the transformation of their bodies, taking into account their interpretations about health or illness, is fundamental for health promotion of this population.