Teaching and indigenous health: self-care practices in pregnancy

Abstract

The development of policies recommended by the Unified Health System (SUS) for indigenous populations indicates the need to insert into the curricula of health courses an understanding of the processes of illness and treatment that are specific to the cultural dynamics of these peoples. The objective of the article is to understand which are the self-care practices used during pregnancy by indigenous peoples in Brazil. The integrative literature review covered national and international publications from 2010 to 2019, being identified eight texts that composed the study sample. Part of the health measures in indigenous pregnancy are of self-care. The practices of self-care in indigenous pregnancy were divided into five axes: diet; medicinal plants; physical effort; sexual relations and others. The results identified that the processes of illness and treatment are immersed in the cultural dynamics of indigenous peoples and are reflected in different health practices in pregnancy. The study of self-care practices in indigenous pregnancy can contribute to the training of health professionals that contemplates an interdisciplinary perspective of action, as well as the development of public policies that consider the cultural specificities of indigenous peoples as required by Brazilian legislation.