On Fri, 31 May 2002 08:56:48 +1000, Phosphor <[log in to unmask]> wrote:


>.., the precarious state of Tarahumara children's health has been known for
>decades. Tarahumara infant mortality rate (95 per 1000 live borns) is
>nearly
>double that of the national indigenous infant mortality rate (55 x 1000).
>Children's anthropometry is typical of chronic undernutrition. In the local
>hospitals of Guachochi municipality, high numbers of child deaths are
>reported due to infectious diseases along with moderate to severe
>malnutrition
>http://www.chi.itesm.mx/~investig/Salud_Indigena/7foodaid.html

Such a contemporary malnutrition amoung a indigenous population needn't have
to do with the properties of their traditional staple.
They will have adopted some bad "westernized" habits, like sugar, alcohol
etc..  I guess you would *not* attribute the current health state of inuit
to their traditional diet.

Most of the native american "indians" were agricultural,
and they had it well developped beautifully within their genetical
resources.

In the case of your corn people however I think the special properties of
corn (we call it maize) can well explain deficiencies.
It's certainly not a deficiency of protein.
2400 kcal of maize yield 64g protein, that's 117% RDA. Together with some
beans (as native in the Americas) they make up an excellent protein with a
quality like egg (which is 10% better than muscle meat).

But the problem is niacin.
Niacin in maize (and millet) isn't available without a special treatment
(which some mexican tribes had adopted).
In addition maize is low in tryptophan which can be used by the body to make
niacin (low niacin nutrition is a tryptophan hole).
So maize people live in the danger of niacin malnutrition.
Niacin es essential for healthy, needless to say.

regards

Amadeus