Here we present oxygen and carbon isotope records of benthic foraminifera species from the continental shelf sediments influenced by upwelling events in the southwestern Atlantic. Cibicides kullenbergi and Uvigerina peregrina were analyzed in three box-cores dated from the last two centuries in a multidecadal resolution. The results obtained allowed us to understand the impact of phytodetritus inputs over the benthic foraminifera shell calcification and the oceanographic conditions prevailing in the Cabo Frio continental shelf since ~1800CE.