An approach to cultural knowledge of type 2 diabetes mellitus in western Mexico

Abstract

Diabetes in Mexico has grown notably. In order to know the socio-cultural representations of diabetes, a study was conducted on two groups of people with this disease in Tepic and Guadalajara, using a transversal design in three stages, with anthropologic techniques structured to establish a cultural consensus, semantic models of the causes, complications and trajectory of diabetes mellitus type 2.The results suggest a shared model of causes for both sexes, in which diabetes is represented as a process in which the experiences and control of the disease play determinant roles in the construction of the representation.