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Cited by 101Water Governance and InfrastructureWater Resource Management and QualityPublic Health and Social Inequalities

Suffering from water: social origins of bodily distress in a Mexican community.

Ennis‐McMillan, Michael C.·2001·Medical Anthropology Quarterly
DOI 10.1525/maq.2001.15.3.368
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Abstract

This article is an ethnographic analysis of what it means to "suffer from water." Using a critical medical anthropology approach, the study examines how residents living in a foothill community of the Valley of Mexico experience bodily distress associated with water scarcity. Data for the study come from participant-observation of domestic water use and community drinking water management as well as interviews with local civil and religious officials who monitor the water distribution system. While the community discourse on suffering from water does not correspond to biomedical categories of illness, it does speak to the physical and emotional hardships and the social conditions that limit residents' access to an adequate supply of domestic water. By taking a broad view of water-related suffering, the study reveals some of the efforts made by people to address what they consider to be the social origins of their bodily distress.

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Crossref · 10.1525/maq.2001.15.3.368

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  • Women's involvement in WASH-related collective action has led to sustained involvement in water and sanitation issues as well as collective action around non-WASH issues, and also has encouraged respect from community members, including men.

    “Women's involvement in WASH-related collective action has led to sustained involvement in water and sanitation issues [89,163] as well as collective action around non-WASH issues, [56,126,145] and also has encouraged respect from community members, including men [26,56,89,166].”

    From Water, sanitation, and women’s empowerment: A systematic review and qualitative metasynthesis (2022) · cites this paper as [163]

  • Women's collective action has led to funding, demand, construction, repair, and maintenance of water services and latrines.

    “Women's collective action has led to funding, demand, construction, repair, and maintenance of water services [56, 61, 73, 78, 89, 91, 125, 129, 163, 165, 168, 169, 193, 296] and latrines [129, 139, 147, 168, 170, 174, 175].”

    From Water, sanitation, and women’s empowerment: A systematic review and qualitative metasynthesis (2022) · cites this paper as [163]

  • Women have organized to form lending groups to support women-led WASH businesses, provide community education about water safety, monitor open defecation, and respond to sanitation-related harassment.

    “Women have organized to form lending groups to support women-led WASH businesses, [66] provide community education about water safety, [56, 61, 73, 78, 89, 91, 125, 129, 163, 165, 168, 169, 193, 296] monitor open defecation, [145] and respond to sanitation-related harassment.[174]”

    From Water, sanitation, and women’s empowerment: A systematic review and qualitative metasynthesis (2022) · cites this paper as [163]

  • Awareness of their unequal position in society was reported to influence how women approached resolving water issues in Sri Lanka and Mexico, and sanitation issues in India.

    “Awareness of their unequal position in society was reported to influence how women approached resolving water issues in Sri Lanka [56] and Mexico, [163] and sanitation issues in India [145].”

    From Water, sanitation, and women’s empowerment: A systematic review and qualitative metasynthesis (2022) · cites this paper as [163]

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Authors
Ennis‐McMillan, M. C.
Affiliations
Skidmore College (US)
Corresponding author
Ennis‐McMillan, Michael C.
Venue
Medical Anthropology Quarterly
Publisher
Wiley
Published
2001-09
Volume
15
Issue
3
Pages
368-390
ISSN
  • 0745-5194 (ISSN-L)
  • 1548-1387
DOI
10.1525/maq.2001.15.3.368
OpenAlex
W2017272061
Cited by
101
References
42
Citations by year
2026: 3 · 2025: 1 · 2024: 8 · 2023: 6 · 2022: 10 · 2021: 12 · 2020: 8 · 2019: 10 · 2018: 2 · 2017: 5 · 2016: 7 · 2015: 6 · 2014: 4 · 2013: 1 · 2012: 3
FWCI
3.93
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
closed
Licence
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/termsAndConditions#vor (vor, 2320 d)
Locations
  • Medical Anthropology Quarterly (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Political Science and International Relations › Water Governance and Infrastructure
  • Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Water Science and Technology › Water Resource Management and Quality
  • Social Sciences › Health › Public Health and Social Inequalities
Keywords
water scarcity, household water use, drinking water administration, water distribution, Valley of Mexico, critical medical anthropology, water access
MeSH terms
Anthropology, Cultural, Attitude to Health, Drinking, Health Status, Humans, Mexico, Poverty Areas, Public Health, Research Design, Sanitation, Social Conditions, Sociology, Medical, Water Supply

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