Professional Documents
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World Health and Food Organization
World Health and Food Organization
Mayeh A. Omar
The author is with the WHO Collaborating Centre for In general, nomads have a system of
Training and Research in District Health Systems,
Istituto Superiore di Sanita, Viale Regina Elena 299, collective ownership in the clan or tribe.
00161 Rome, Italy. Today's nomads are the caretakers of the
clan's inherited livestock. They take only as have a slow, swinging gait that is energy-
much food and hides from the herds as is saving and does not cause overheating. A
needed for subsistence, the aim being to considerable capacity for resisting flies and
hand them over to the next generation in disease has also evolved.
improved condition and increased numbers.
The strong bonds that exist within the clans
tend to induce a reluctance to accept Infant and child mortality, and accidental
development, including the introduction of deaths associated with herding, tend to be
health services. high in nomadic communities. General
health is comparatively good, thanks to
satisfactory nutrition and an existence close
to nature, but some diseases, for instance
trachoma, may occur frequently because of
ecological and climatic factors.
I am extremely grateful to Dr Ranieri Guerra and 3. Visser. W.M. Malaria eradication among the
Dr Maymuna Omar for reviewing the present article nomads in Somalia. WHO Chronicle, 19: 232-239
and providing useful suggestions. (1965).