Diet, disease and demography : hunter-gatherers in Arnhem Land

Abstract

The aim of this thesis is to examine the nutritional status of hunter gatherers in Australia by evaluating data on the quality of the diet, its role in influencing observed patterns on health and disease, and the affect that these have on demography. As it is not possible to closely evaluate the nutritional content of all Aboriginal diets, the diet of Aborigines in Arnhem Land has been chosen to be studied in detail. My data will be drawn from existing anthropological and medical literature.