Editing New World syndrome

{{short description|Non-communicable diseases brought on by consumption of junk food and a sedentary lifestyle}}
'''New World syndrome''' is a set of [[non-communicable disease]]s brought on by consumption of [[junk food]] and a [[sedentary lifestyle]], especially common to [[indigenous peoples of the Americas]], [[Indigenous peoples of Oceania|Oceania]], and [[circumpolar peoples]].<ref name="Gracey1995">{{cite journal|last=Gracey|first=Michael|year=1995|title=New World syndrome in Western Australian aborigines|journal=Clinical and Experimental Pharmacology and Physiology|volume=22|issue=3|pages=220–225|issn=0305-1870|doi=10.1111/j.1440-1681.1995.tb01985.x|pmid=7554419|s2cid=27870339 |url=http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/journal/119247811/abstract|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130105122820/http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/journal/119247811/abstract|url-status=dead|archive-date=2013-01-05}}</ref> It is characterized by [[obesity]], [[heart disease]], [[diabetes]], [[hypertension]], and shortened [[life expectancy|life span]].

==Causes==
New World syndrome is linked to a change from a [[traditional diet]] and [[physical exercise|exercise]] to a [[Western diet]] and a sedentary lifestyle. Traditional occupations of indigenous people—such as fishing, farming, and hunting—tended to involve constant activity, whereas modern office jobs do not. The introduction of modern transportation such as automobiles also decreased physical exertion.<ref name="Atlantic2011">{{cite journal|last=Shell|first=Ellen Ruppel|year=2001|title=New World Syndrome - Spam and turkey tails have turned Micronesians into Macronesians. A case study of how fatty Western plenty is taking a disastrous toll on people in developing countries|journal=The Atlantic|volume=50|issn=1072-7825|url=https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2001/06/new-world-syndrome/302248/}}</ref> Meanwhile, Western foods which are rich in fat, salt, sugar, and refined starches are also imported into countries. The amount of carbohydrates in diets increases.<ref name="Keepers">{{cite book|last1=Lambert|first1=Lorelei|title=Keepers of the Central Fire: Issues in Ecology for Indigenous Peoples|year=1999|publisher=Jones & Bartlett Publishers|location=Sudbury, MA|isbn=9780763709235|oclc=44955349|page=[https://archive.org/details/keepersofcentral0000lamb/page/46 46]|chapter=The Kerr Dam: Collisions of Cultures|quote=With the expansion of the dominant culture, the people of the Flathead Nation grew increasingly dependent on a cash economy, and the dietary and health changes that resulted from an increase of carbohydrates in the diet. Today, diabetes, cardiac problems, hypertension, and the plethora of disease caused by obesity plague many members of the Flathead Nation (Personal conversation with Roy Big Crane).|chapter-url=https://archive.org/details/keepersofcentral0000lamb/page/46}}</ref>

==Diagnosis==
The diagnosis does not require specific criteria. Obesity is often followed by its [[Complication (medicine)|complications]] like [[hyperlipidemia]], hypertension, and cardiac diseases.

==See also==
* [[Alcohol and Native Americans]]
* [[Diabetes in Indigenous Australians]]
* [[Genetics of obesity]]
* [[Human genetic variation]]
* [[Indigenous health in Australia]]
* [[Metabolic syndrome]]
* [[Native American health]]
* [[Obesity in the Pacific]]
* [[Thrifty gene hypothesis]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* {{cite web|url=https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2001/06/new-world-syndrome/302248/|title=New World Syndrome|date=2001-06-01|author=Ellen Ruppel Shell|work=[[The Atlantic]]}}
* {{cite web|url=http://ecodevoevo.blogspot.com/2014/01/the-new-world-syndrome-genetic-basis.html |title=The 'New World Syndrome' genetic basis: has it been found? | date=2014-01-08 | author=Ken Weiss|work=The Mermaid's Tale}}
* {{cite journal|title=A new world syndrome of metabolic diseases with a genetic and evolutionary basis|date=1984|author=Ken Weiss|journal=[[American Journal of Physical Anthropology]]|doi=10.1002/ajpa.1330270508|volume=27|pages=153–178}}

[[Category:Culture-bound syndromes]]
[[Category:Health in Greenland]]
[[Category:Health in Oceania]]
[[Category:Health in North America]]
[[Category:Indigenous health]]
[[Category:Indigenous health in Canada]]
[[Category:Indigenous health in Australia]]
[[Category:Medical conditions related to obesity]]
[[Category:Modernity]]
[[Category:Race and health]]
[[Category:Social issues]]