ISSUES ON ANTHROPOLOGICAL

H E A LT H I N A S I A
——

BY: GREGORIO G. COSTELO II

What is Anthropology
of Health
Anthropology of Health is the study of
human biology and how it relates to cultural
and physical environments through time. It
emphasizes the effects of cultural and
socioeconomic processes on biological and
health outcomes in human populations.
W hat cultural factors affect our health?
In order to improve the health behaviors of the community, cultural factors affecting health behavior
and health care services need to be clearly recognized

The individuals’ beliefs about health, attitudes and behaviors, past experiences, treatment practices,
in short their culture, play a vital role in improving health, preventing and treating diseases

Cultural variables can be motivational factors in health-disease relationships:


Socioeconomic status

Pregnancy and birth practices 
Professions

Family pattern

Body 
Religion

Gender roles and responsibilities

Nutrition 
Habits

Marriage patterns

Dressing/wearing 
Culture-induced stress

Sexual behavior

Personal hygiene 
Status of immigrants

Preventive patterns

Housing arrangements 
Substance use

Population policy

General health regulations 
Leisure time habits
E nvironmental Factors that Affect Health
From the quality of the air you breathe to the condition of the roads you drive on,
environmental factors can have a major influence on your health. What’s more, these
factors have evolved considerably over time, due to both natural and human-caused
events.Professionals in the environmental health field examine how people interact with
the world around them, chronicling the many ways that these interactions can impact
physical fitness, vulnerability to disease, and other aspects of human wellness.

 Chemical safety
 Air pollution
 Climate change and natural disasters
 Diseases caused by microbes
 Lack of access to health care
 Infrastructure issues
 Poor water quality
 Global environmental issues
Issue in Anthropology of Health in Asia

Impact of Asian Culture on Mental Health

Alternative Medicine and Superstitous Remedy
Impact of Family Values and Beliefs on Health
The Stigma in Asian Culture on Mental Health
Most Asians view mental illness as shameful and often hide it or keep silent if family members
develop it as well. There is also a sense of denial when someone we know has a cognitive decline.
Overall this attitude towards mental health can prevent treatment and cause further accelerating
the mental illness or disorder of people
 Pressures in the Community
One University of Maryland study examined the mental health needs of young Asian American
adults. Study participants were either born in India, Cambodia, China, Indonesia, Korea, Taiwan,
Thailand, or Vietnam or recently immigrated from those countries.

The researchers learned that these individuals faced a range of pressures and problems that
discouraged them from seeking help for mental health concerns. Some said they felt tremendous
pressure to be academically or professionally successful. To stay focused, they ignored or denied
symptoms. Others cited cultural concerns. They explained that mental health was a taboo topic in
their communities.
Geoffrey Liu, MD, a psychiatrist in McLean’s Behavioral Health Partial Hospital
Program, explained stigma in the community. “For some Asian Americans,” he said,
“there’s a real sense that your value as a person depends on your ability to take care
of your family and community.” Liu continued, “This way of thinking originated, for
East Asians, from an ancient philosophical tradition called Confucianism. Mental
illness is seen—and I should emphasize, incorrectly—as taking away a person’s
ability to care for others. For that reason, it’s seen as taking away someone’s identity
or purpose. It’s the ultimate form of shame.”

For some, the pressure of being part of a “model minority” stood in the way of
treatment. Many Asian Americans see themselves as part of a group that seamlessly
integrated into their new society. They characterize themselves as intelligent,
industrious, and fully in charge of their lives. For many, admitting to “weakness”
would be letting down the entire community.“It’s easy to say that the reason Asian
Americans don’t seek care is the way their culture stigmatizes mental illness,” said
Liu. “That stance, though, ignores the role we all play in enhancing stigma by
allowing dangerous stereotypes, like ‘model minority,’ to persist.”
Mental Mindset of Asians

This picture shows the overwork culture in In china the “Gao Kao” or College Entrance
Japan whi ch also has its equivalent in other Exam is taken to the extreme with students
Eastern and South Eastern Asian countries studying for hours to prepare for the exam
 Ethical Issues Relating to Faith Healing Practices in South Asia: A Medical Perspective
Sidd harth Sarkar, Sreekanth Sakey an d Shivan and Kattimani*

E th ical Issue s
•The issues relating to such faith healing practices can be looked from the lens of general
principles of medical ethics, i.e. autonomy,beneficence, non-maleficence and justice. First and
the foremost is the principle of autonomy. Though the patients and/or their family members can
exercise autonomy in making a decision on whether to seek treatment from faith healers, the
procedure of faith healing is quite prescriptive and does not provide a menu of options to
choose from. Coercion might exist in some forms of faith healing practices. Some instances of
temple healing involving seclusion and restraint of individuals, and contravene the provision of
least restrictive care. At times, decisions for seeking such are made by the family members
and the individual just complies with the faith healing procedure suggested.
 E f fic a c y a n d P o t e n tia l H a rms
•E ffic a c y o f th e fa ith h e a lin g p r a c tic e s m a y b e c o n s id e re d a m a tte r o f d e b a te . S o m e a u th o ritie s m a y
c o n s id e r th e s e p ra c tic e s a re u se fu l in r e d u c in g th e s y m p to m s o f d istr e s s th ro u g h th e p la c e b o ,
e s p e c ia lly fo r c o n d itio n s lik e d e p re s s io n . F o r a p la ce b o to w o rk , th e in d ivid u a l s h o u ld b e lie v e in t h e
p la c e b o . Th e ritu a ls a n d c e r e m o n ie s s u rr o u n d in g th e fa ith h e a lin g p ra ctic e s p r o v id e a p e rs u a siv e
p la c e b o , wh ic h h a s b e e n s u g g e s te d to le a d to p a tie n t im p ro v e m e n t . Ho we v e r, fro m a n o th e r
p e r s p e c tive , p la ce b o is u n lik e ly to w o rk fo r d is o r d e r s lik e c a n c e r s , a n d u s e o f fa ith h e a lin g p r a c tic e s
m a y d o mo re h a rm th a n g o o d . S o m e o f th e s e fa ith h e a lin g p ra c tic e s a r e a s so cia te d with p o te n tia l
h a r m s . S o m e tim e s , p ra c tic e s wh ic h in c lu d e ch a in in g a n d in v o lu n ta r y re str a in t in te m p le s m a y le a d to
la ce ra tio n s , fra c tu re s a n d wo u n d s .C o n d u c t o f c e re m o n ia l r itu a ls in c lo s e d e n v iro n m e n t m a y le a d to
in a d v e r te n t c a rb o n mo n o x id e p o is o n in g .
 Cultural beliefs on disease causation in the Philippines: challenge and implications in genetic counseling
Peter James B. Abad,corresponding a u t h o r M i c h a e l L . Ta n , M e l i s s a M a e P. B a l u y o t , A n g e l a Q . V i l l a , G a y L u z Ta l a p i a n , M a . E l o u i s a R e y e s , R i z a C o n c o r d i a S u a r e z , A s t e r L y n n D. Sur,
Vanessa Dyan R. Aldemita, Carmencita David Padilla, and Mercy Ygona Laurino

Filipino word/s depicting cultural beliefs and their English translation

Filipino word depicting cultural beliefs:

Namamana Inheritance
Lihi Conception or maternal cravings
Pasma Hot and cold syndrome
Sumpa and gaba Curse
Namaligno Mystical and supernatural causes
Kaloob ng Diyos God’s will
 Namamana
BA, a 6-year-old girl, was first brought to clinic due to the prompting of her school
teacher. She was observed to be of significant short stature when compared to her
peers. However, no pediatric genetics consults were previously pursued because short
stature was said to be “namamana” in their family. During her evaluation with a medical
geneticist, she was diagnosed to have achondroplasia. The family was shocked upon
hearing this information.
Lihi
LC is a 25-year-old female who was seen at the local health clinic due to flu-like
symptoms. During examination, she was noted to have crab-like arms and legs and her
family history revealed that both her parents and a maternal aunt also have the same
condition. No prior consultations were pursued due to their family’s belief that her
maternal grandmother had taken a “lihi” for crabs while pregnant, hence giving birth to
children with crab-like limbs. On consult, she was diagnosed to have ectrodactyly, or
split hand and foot malformation.
 Sumpa and Gaba
AS, a 12-year-old girl, is noted to have baldness and senile appearance, and her
mother shared that these features started when she was 5 years old. At her genetics
consult, she was diagnosed to have Progeria and was featured in the local media.
Her father referred to her as “sumpa” of the family. Her mother narrated that her
husband would always beat AS and blamed her for their life struggles. This became
habitual and her mother decided to take AS and her younger sisters away.

GV is a 33-year-old married woman who sought consult at the cancer genetics clinic
due to changes in bowel movement and sudden weight loss. She was diagnosed with
colon cancer, and her family history is significant for multiple members with previous
diagnosis of cancer (e.g., kidney, endometrial, renal, and liver cancers). With
resignation, the patient shared during the clinic visit that the cancers in the family
are due to “gaba.”
 Namaligno
JH, a 28-year-old female, was admitted in the emergency room for severe abdominal pain
and increased abdominal girth. Physical examination and series of diagnostic tests
revealed that she has ovarian cancer. She had several prior consultations with a
traditional healer who told her that the increase in abdominal girth was due to a “maligno”
or a supernatural being who took fancy at her. Her family history showed that her mother
and two maternal aunts died of early-onset breast and ovarian cancers.
Kaloob ng Diyos
CA is a 33-year-old who came for genetic counseling because of recurrent pregnancy
loss. She is a gravida 7 para 0 wherein all pregnancies terminated before 12-week age of
gestation as early embryonic demise or blighted pregnancy. When her psychosocial status
was assessed, her acceptance of the situation was embodied with the belief in God’s will.
She was asked how she was coping with the losses and she responds “Siguro, kaloob ng
Diyos ito.” (Free translation: Perhaps it is God’s will that all these happened).
 Family Values and Beliefs on Health

With the COVID-19 Pandemic, the extended nature of the Asian family became a detrement as
it meant that when a household became infected in involved more than just the core family but
also relatives which caused many infections spread by family members that unknowingly came
into contact with the virus and having the whole extended family in quarantine.
Introduction: Hospital-at-Home (HaH) programmes are well-established in Australia, Europe, and the United States. However, there is limited experience
in Asia, where the hospital is traditionally seen as a safe and trusted space for healing. This cross-sectional study aimed to explore attitudes and
perceptions among patients and caregivers in Singapore toward this care model.

Survey responses were collected from 120 participants (101

patients, 19 caregivers; response rate: 76%), of which 87
respondents (72.5%) expressed willingness to try HaH if offered.
Many respondents valued non-quantifiable programme benefits,
including perceived gains in quality of life. Among them, reasons
cited for acceptance included preference for the comfort of their
home environment, presence of family members, and confidence
toward remote monitoring modalities.
“Asian Americans like being doctors, but not seeing them”, Quartz Magazine Article by Anissa Merelli 2021
I n 2 0 20 , th er e w er e a n e s ti ma t ed 1 0 mi llion ca nc e r de at hs gl o bal ly, w it h 5 8 .3 % oc cu rri ng in As ia . Fe ma le bre a st c a nce r i s t he mo st c ommon ly dia gnos e d ca nc e r glob al ly w i th s ome of t he highe s t
b re as t ca nc e r i nc ide nc e a nd mort a li ty ra t es oc cur ring i n As ia n cou nt rie s i nc ludin g I ndone si a . I n t he c ont ex t of In done si a , th e a ge- s t a nda rdi ze d i nci de nce an d mort a li t y r a t es of bre as t c a nc e r
a re 4 4 a nd 15 .3 pe r 10 0 ,0 0 0 popul at i on, r es pe c t iv e ly. In t he c oun tr y, br e as t c a nc er is mos tl y dia gnos e d a t l at e r s t a ge s wi th low s urv iv a l r a te s . F rom limit e d re s e ar ch , pa t ie nt an d se rv i ce - le v e l
f a c t ors a re b ei ng ide nt i f ied t ha t may in f lue nce t he t imi ng of int e ra c ti on w it h h e al th s er vi ce s a nd th e common la t e pre s en ta t ion a mong bre a s t ca nc e r pa t ie nt s in Ind ones i a.
All participants initially dismissed their earliest symptoms, often experienced as a painless lump in the breast (quote 1). With the growth of a lump sometimes accompanied by
changing breast shape, participants would typically explore self-care using herbal or traditional medicine approaches (quote 2). Most participants decided to seek medical care
w h en s ym p to ms w o rs en ed , in clu d in g lu mp s b eco m in g p ain fu l, ch an g e s in t h e s ha p e o r ap p ea ra n ce o f th e b rea st, a n d in c re asin g p ain in o th e r p a rt s o f t h eir b o d y, d es p it e e ffo rts to
manage them (quote 3).
S o m e p a r t i c i p a n t s e n d u r e d m u l t i p l e s y m p t o m s w i t h o u t a c c e s s i n g h e a l t h c a r e s e r v i c e s , i n c l u d i n g d i f f i c u l t i e s w i t h b r e a t h i n g a n d t h e f e e l i n g o f a h e a v y c h e s t ( q u o t e 4 ) . C o s t s o f m e d i c a l c a r e w e r e
p e r c e i v e d a s u n a f f o r d a b l e b y p a r t i c i p a n t s , d e s p i t e c o n t i n u i n g t o i n c u r c o s t s f r o m t r a d i t i o n a l m e d i c i n e p r o v i d e r s w i t h l i t t l e o r n o i m p r o v e m e n t i n t h e i r s y m p t o m s ( q u o t e 5 ) . A l o n g s i d e c o s t , a d d i t i o n a l
f a c t o r s i n f l u e n c i n g p a r t i c i p a n t s ’ d e c i s i o n s r e g a r d i n g e n g a g e m e n t w i t h h e a l t h c a r e i n c l u d e d p e r s o n a l , i n n e r c o n f l i c t s a n d t h e i n f l u e n c e a n d e n c o u r a g e m e n t o f f a m i l y. P a r t i c i p a n t s w e r e r e l u c t a n t t o a c c e s s
h e a l t h c a r e f a c i l i t i e s d u e t o f e a r a n d a s s u m p t i o n s r e l a t i n g t o s u r g e r y ( q u o t e 6 ) , a n d f o r w o m e n w i t h c h i l d r e n , m o s t f e l t t h e i r n e e d s a n d c o n c e r n s s h o u l d b e s e c o n d a r y t o t h o s e o f t h e i r c h i l d r e n ( q u o t e
7 ) .
 Questions
1. What is anthropology of health? How is
anthropology related to health and health care
2. What are issues in the Asian communities that
—— for their health?
cause problems
3. As an Asian how important do you view mental
health? What needs to be done to make it more
acceptable to seek help for Asians experiencing
mental health problems?
Thank you
——
Click here to add the text, the text is the refinement of your thought,
and please try to explain the point of view as succinctly as possible.