Nutrition LandscapeBy: Anna Bondy

Considerations

Universal health care a constitutional right in Brazil since 1988

Economic improvements over the last 30 years have led to increased access to healthcare and food

Brazil is undergoing a demographic and nutrition transition

Peak of its workforce

Shift from underweight to obesity

Demographics

According to the WHO, there were 200,362,000 people living in Brazil in 2013.1

Of these 200 million people, 11% are over the age of 60, and 24% are under the age of 15.

85% of the population lives in urban areas1.

In 2010, the population was 48% white, 8% Black, 43% Pardo, 1.1% Asian and .4% indigenous.A,2

Population density by State in 1996

Source: FAO 2000

Improvements in Stunting & Underweight

Between 1987 and 2007, the prevalence of stunting in children under 5 decreased from 27% to 13% 6,8

Narrowing the gap between low and income families

17.9% prevalence of stunting in the northeast

Between 1975 and 1996 the prevalence of wasting in children under 5 decreased from 5% to 2% 10

8.3% prevalence in the northeast

The Challenges of Obesity

In 2009, 1 in 8 men were obese and 1 in 6 women were obese.14

Nutrition Transition

Urban population

Access to cheap, high-fat, high-sugar foods

Obesity disproportionately impacts:

Women

Low income

Lower educational attainment 12,14

Obesity Rates in Urban and Rural Areas

  Brazil 1997

  Men WomenUrban 7.9% 12.7%Rural 2.8% 10%

Table 1.3Prevalence of obesity in Brazil, by gender and urban or rural settingSource: Filozof, 200112

Source: Filozof, 200112

Micronutrient deficiencies

Vitamin A 17 18

16% of children under 5 in the northeast are deficient

Fortification of sugar in northeast

In Rio de Janeiro in 1998, 56% of newborns and 14% of pregnant women were vitamin A deficient10

Iron .5,18 21% of children under 5 are anemic

35% of children under 5 in the northeast are anemic

Iodine 23 95.7% of salt is iodized

10.2% of children ages 6-18 in Minas Gerais were moderately or seriously deficient

Glossary

A Pardo (or Moreno): in Brazil, someone of mixed-race ancestry, literally meaning “brown or “grey”; often includes indigenous populations 3

B Overweight: in adults, BMI 25-29.9 kg/m2; in children, weight-for age > +2 SD10

C Obesity: in adults, BMI > 30 kg/m2 10

D Stunting: height-for-age < -2 SD10, in children

E Underweight: in adults, BMI < 18.5; in children, weight-for-age < -2 SD10

F Wasting: weight-for-age < -2 SD10, in children10

G Vitamin A deficiency: retinol levels below 0.70 μg/dL.20

Bibliography 1. Brazil: WHO Statistical Profile.; 2015.

2. IndexMundi. Brazil Demographics Profile 2014. 2014. http://www.indexmundi.com/brazil/demographics_profile.html.

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4. 5 Regions of Brazil. 2015:5-6. http://www.brazil.org.nz/page/five-regions.aspx. Accessed April 6, 2015.

5. Osório MM, Lira PIC, BatistaFilho M, Ashworth A. Prevalence of anemia in children 6 - 59 months old in the state of Pernambuco, Brazil. 2001;10(2):2-9.

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15. UNICEF. Vitamin A Supplementation: A Decade of Progress. 2007. https://www.unicef.at/fileadmin/media/Infos_und_Medien/Info-Material/Ernaehrung_und_Gesundheit/Vitamin_A_Supplementation.pdf. Accessed April 13, 2015.

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17. Simmons WK. Xerophthalmia and blindness in Northeast Brazil. Am J Clin Nutr. 1976;29(1):116-122.

18. Karla W, Albuquerque P, Costa MDF. Anemia and vitamin A deficiency in children under five years of age assisted by the Family Health Strategy in the state of Pernambuco, Brazil. Sci Public Heal. 2014;19(4).

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20. Konstantyner T, Warkentin S TJ. Prevalence and determinants of vitamin A deficiency among Brazilian children under 2 years of age from the 2006 National Demographic Health Survey. Food Nutr Bull. 2014;35(4):422-430.

21. Macedo M de S, Teixeira RA, Bonomo É, et al. Iodine malnutrition and associated factors in schoolchildren aged 6 to 14 years in a municipality situated in the semiarid region of the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil, 2008. Food Nutr Sci. 2014:2008-2019.

22. Rossi AC, Tomimori E, Camargo R, Medeiros-Neto G. Searching for iodine deficiency disorders in schoolchildren from Brazil: the Thyromobil project. Thyroid. 2001;11(7):661-663. doi:10.1089/105072501750362727.

23. UNICEF. Statistics: Brazil. 2013. http://www.unicef.org/infobycountry/brazil_statistics.html. Accessed April 10, 2015.