Resumen

ALTAMIRANO, Nicol  y  HETZ, Erwin. Beliefs about nutrition and childhood obesity among caregivers of mapuche and non-mapuche schoolchildren. An Venez Nutr [online]. 2024, vol.37, n.1, pp.2-13.  Epub 04-Feb-2025. ISSN 0798-0752.  https://doi.org/10.54624/2024.37.1.002.

The influence of cultural and family variables is relevant for the development of food preferences and habits, especially during school age. In Chile, the prevalence of childhood obesity and overweight reaches 44.5%. Objective: to compare beliefs about obesity and children’s nutrition among caregivers of Mapuche and non-Mapuche children. Materials and method: a phenomenographic qualitative study, in which semi-structured interviews were used as the data collection instrument, involving 26 primary caregivers of first to fourth grade students from two municipalities in central- southern Chile. Results: similarities were found in the core knowledge and beliefs about obesity and nutrition between Mapuche and non-Mapuche groups. However, there are particularities in the experience of secondary elements, such as the belief among the Mapuche group that children need more food than what is provided at schools, or the perception of having greater access to processed foods.

Palabras clave : knowledge; malnutrition; feeding; obesity; ethnicity; mapuches.

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