Perceptions of health and nutrition in Wixárika families living in the Guadalajara Metropolitan Area

Abstract

The perceptions of health and nutrition of families belonging to the Wixárika (Indigenous people of the Sierra Madre Occidental, Mexico) who have emigrated from their places of origin are analyzed. A qualitative case study design is applied through the analysis of 15 in-depth interviews with migrants living in Yetapa, the Wixárika name for the Guadalajara Metropolitan Area, Jalisco, Mexico, in July 2022. The Wixárika people perceive good health as maintaining the balance in their lives in the areas of nutrition, spirituality, interpersonal relationships, and physical activity while maintaining their culture. Due to their urban dispersion and distance from their communities of origin, they have difficulties with the latter which causes dietary changes and health problems. This article contributes knowledge about health to further integrate the different Indigenous perspectives into science.