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TUESDAY, OCTOBER 29, 2002

Indians in North and South America experienced a decline in health well before Europeans set foot in the Western Hemisphere, according to a new book.

Indian communities that were more agricultural and urban were in the poorer health, researchers concluded. The worst were found in Mexico and Central America and Zuni Pueblo in New Mexico.

The Backbone of History: Health and Nutrition in the Western Hemisphere was based on an examination of more than 12,500 skeletons from 65 sites. The older the site, the better the health, according to the researchers.

The study was conducted by Richard H. Steckel of Ohio State University and Jerome C. Rose of the University of Arkansas.

Steckel previously co-published a study that showed a 50 percent increase in traumatic injuries among Native Americans after the arrival of Columbus.

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Don't Blame Columbus for All the Indians' Ills (The New York Times 10/29)
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