The Anthropology of Infectious Disease

by Peter J. Brown, Marcia C. Inhorn

2013 · Routledge

Anthropological contributions to the study of infectious disease and to the study of actual infectious disease eradication programmes have rarely been collected in one volume. In the era of AIDS and the global resurgance of infectious diseases such as tuberculosis and malaria, there is widespread interest and concern about the cultural, ecological and political factors that are directly related to the increased prevalence of infectious disease. In this book, the authors have assembled the growing scholarship in one volume. Chapters explore the coevolution of genes and cultural traits; the cultural construction of 'disease' and how these models influence health-seeking behaviour; cultural adaptive strategies to infectious disease problems; the ways in which ethnography sheds light on epidemiological patterns of infectious disease; the practical and ethical dilemmas that anthropologists face by participating in infectious disease programmes; and the political ecology of infectious disease.

Health Transitions in Arctic Populations

by Peter Bjerregaard, T. Kue Young

2008 · University of Toronto Press

The Arctic regions are inhabited by diverse populations, both indigenous and non-indigenous. Health Transitions in Arctic Populations describes and explains changing health patterns in these areas, how particular patterns came about, and what can be done to improve the health of Arctic peoples. This study correlates changes in health status with major environmental, social, economic, and political changes in the Arctic. T. Kue Young and Peter Bjerregaard seek commonalities in the experiences of different peoples while recognizing their considerable diversity. They focus on five Arctic regions – Greenland, Northern Canada, Alaska, Arctic Russia, and Northern Fennoscandia, offering a general overview of the geography, history, economy, population characteristics, health status, and health services of each. The discussion moves on to specific indigenous populations (Inuit, Dene, and Sami), major health determinants and outcomes, and, finally, an integrative examination of what can be done to improve the health of circumpolar peoples. Health Transitions in Arctic Populations offers both an examination of key health issues in the north and a vision for the future of Arctic inhabitants.