Introduction

It is understood by all Australians that the health of Aboriginal people has suffered greatly as a result of European settlement and Westernisation. Morbidity and mortality statistics for Aborigines are considerably worse than for non-Aboriginal Australians: infant and perinatal mortality are approximately 2–4 times those of white Australians, with gastrointestinal infection a prime cause; hospital admissions for bacterial and parasitic infection and for respiratory disorders are approximately 5–7 times those of non-Aborigines; life expectancy for Aboriginal men and women is, on average, approximately 17 years less than for non-Aboriginal Australians (Thomson, 1991). While this has been acknowledged by the Australian government and increasing amounts of money and resources are being directed to Aboriginal health problems, ‘lifestyle diseases’ such as noninsulin- dependent (type 2) diabetes mellitus, cardiovascular disease and alchoholism have become particularly prevalent. Relatively little attention has been paid to the links between changing lifestyles (including settlement patterns, activity and nutrition), immune status, community health and health education, in the formulation of effective health services which take into account differences in cultural beliefs and practices.

There is considerable interest among immunologists and medical practitioners concerning the relationship between lifestyle and immune status: much research has demonstrated that nutritional status and immune responsiveness are strongly correlated (see, for example, Gershwin et al., 1985) and the recent emergence of ‘neuroimmunology’ clearly links emotional and physical ‘stress’ with changes in immune parameters (see, for example, Kelley, 1980).