Suicide Among Guaraní Kaiowá and Nandeva Youth in Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil

Information on morbidity and mortality are critical for developing appropriate prevention and health promotion programs. This study summarizes data on the Guaraní (Kaiowá and Nandeva) communities in Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil, about which little addressing suicide has been documented. Epidemiologic and anthropological data were used to examine suicidal behavior in these indigenous communities. Several findings in this report about the Guaraní Kaiowá and Nandeva communities were remarkable: the rates of suicide among these communities appear higher than the national average; suicide deaths disproportionately affect adolescents and young adults; and suicide rates among young males appear to be increasing. Data in this report highlight the need for health information data specific to a community in order to identify emerging health problems.

Keywords:

• violence
• suicide
• Guaraní (Kaiowá and Nandeva)
• Brazil
• adolescents
• young adults
• indigenous

Notes

¹Kleinman (1980) defines the explanatory frameworks for illness as a group of beliefs or conceptions that seek to explain an episode of a given illness, its causes (etiology), the moment and the manifestation of symptoms, pathophysiology, the evolution of the illness and its treatment.

²An encomendero is the Spanish-language name for a conquistador who was given an encomienda grant over a part of the Spanish conquest of Latin America. The encomienda is a system of tributory labor in which a grant of Indians who were to provide the grantee (the encomendero) tribute in the form of commodities and service in return for protection and religious instruction.

³ Bandeirantes were the organizers of bandeiras (bandeira is the Portuguese for “flag”; the bandeiras used to carry a flag to identify them), private expeditions which explored the interior lands of Brazil during the 17th and early 18th century.

⁴The Jesuits came and devised the “reductions” system of evangelization, organizing Indians into communities where they learned agriculture, husbandry, and trades.

⁵The Capitνo (Captain) is an appointed position, whose authority is recognized by the state.

⁶The cost of a coffin furnished by an undertaker is greater than US$ 100, beyond the means of the majority of the indigenous.