Território e ambiente: a saúde dos camponeses em comunidades rurais no município de Tefé-AM

Abstract

Thermal comfort is defined as the psychophysiological satisfaction of an individual with the thermal conditions of the environment, and the effects of heat on the worker are harmful to health. However, there is still a lack of research on thermal discomfort in rural areas in equatorial climates. This research aimed to understand the diseases and illnesses resulting from thermal discomfort in the work activities of farmers from the rural communities Agrovila and Nossa Senhora do Perpétuo Socorro in the municipality of Tefé. As a theoretical basis, it was based on articles, dissertations, and books about thermal discomfort, work, health, and rural workers. The methodology used included bibliographic research, field work divided into two stages, focus groups, secondary data, use of data from the National Institute of Meteorology (INMET) of average compensated temperature and Relative Air Humidity with the series analyzed from 1991 to 2020, daily, monthly and annually. For the analysis of thermal discomfort, three indexes were used with the comparative purpose of identifying the aggravating conditions of discomfort for heat, namely: Thom and Bosen's index (1959), the heat index according to Stedman (1979) and the thermal overload index-IBUTG. All were analyzed using their respective comfort classes and effects. According to the data over the three decades there was an increase of days in the discomfort range for heat, both daily and monthly. Thus, it was understood that the farmers in both communities suffer from the thermal discomfort in the practice of work, which potentiates symptoms such as dizziness, fainting, headaches, besides musculoskeletal and joint pains, which causes interruption and decrease in the level of overload of the manual labor force in their work, contributing to the low yield of their productions and compromising their health. In conclusion, this work has shown itself to be relevant in the analysis of the thermal discomfort related to the labor activity of peasants, exposing the reality that they go through. Thus, the work contributes to the scientific bias as a theoretical framework for future research in this context, as well as to awaken the visibility and attention of the competent bodies to this class of workers.