Social determinants and malnutrition of infants from two Colombian indigenous communities

Abstract

Objetive To identify the relationship between the Health's Social Determinants and the nutritional status of children belonging to two indigenous communities on the Colombian Caribbean coast, the Wayú and the Zenú. Methods Cross-sectional study that addresses nutritional status in wayúes and zenúes at preschool and school age. Also including the estimation of health’s social deter-minants, referred by minor’s caregivers, which addresses some aspects of structural inequality axes (ethnicity, territory, age, and sex) and intermediates: housing, environ-ment, and networks, through health instruments family. Metrics for height, weight, and inputs for the familiogram and ecomap were standardized. Descriptive measures of frequencies and central tendency were estimated. Odds ratio and its relationship with independent variables were estimated. Results The prevalence of global malnutrition in the Wayú ethnic group was 59.1% (47.5-69.8) and in the Zenú ethnic group 22.4% (15.9-30.4) for a p<0.001. This diffe-rence is related to intermediate risk factors with sanitation: inadequate excreta with OR=2.54; CI (1.42-4.53) p=0.002, lack of employment OR=1.94; CI (1.09-3.46) P=0.03 and lack of access to western health services OR=2.42; IC (1.34-4.40) p=0.005. Conclusions Improvement in nutrition requires the intervention of intermediate determinants related to sanitation, health model, intersectoriality of health policies plus an ethnic-cultural and territorial focus.