AMIOT Jeanice
CHEVIET Océane
CORNE Justine
BEN YOUNES Sirine
Report
Research on the Pimas Indians

Diabetes is a disease, and is a condition in which a person has a high blood glucose level. This high blood glucose level cause as the major risk factor obesity. We know that this disease is due to several stuffs, and the first is the genetics. But studying a community, Pimas Indians, scientists realize that other factor cause the diabetes.
Therefore the purpose is to determine how to prevent the onset of diabetes and obesity putting aside the genetic cause.
50 per cent of Indians Pimas have diabetes, and among them 95 per cent are overweight. Scientist already know, before doing the experience, that Indians Pimas are genetically predisposed to the diabetes and obesity : indeed the James Neel’s theory explain that Indians Pimas, before the 19th century, were self-sufficient, so they worked every day to live : they practiced farming, hunting and fishing. But they didn’t control the nature as they want, so at times, they can’t eat during many day. To be met with this problem, this community, especially, develop the “thirfty gene” wich help them to store fat during times of plenty. Dr. Eric Ravussin, who believes in the Neel’s theory, will prove it thanks to the present-day situation.
Today, we have two types of Indians Pimas : the Pimas Indians who still live as their ancestors who don’t have obesity problems, we will call them “Mexicans Pimas”, and the Pimas Indians who undergo a change of their way of life, we will call them, Pimas. So we’ll compare Mexicans Pimas and present-day pimas to determine, which factor is in charge of diabetes and obesity.
Before to find the differences between them, we will define their commons points : Mexicans Pimas and Pimas have the same ancestors who still in 1890’s worked hard to live, who had a diet with only 15 percent fat and who had a high metabolic rate. According to the Neel’s theory, Mexicans Pimas and Pimas could