Health Concerns for the Inuit

     Traditional survival methods of Northern Alaskan Inuit’s supply adequate nutritional resources to sustain life (Moran, 2008).  The style in which food and shelter resources were collected perpetuated the Inuit’s good level of fitness by forcing them to engage in physical activity while hunting, trapping and fishing (Liu, Hanely, Young, Harris, & Zinman, 2006).  Modern generation Inuit’s have put tradition on hold and chosen to adopt newer alternative methods for survival.  Western industrialized foods in place of naturally obtained nutritional sources cause unbalanced nutrient intakes, snowmobiles in place of Dog pulled sleds minimize hard labor, and prefabricated plywood shacks in place of sod or snow igloos reduce air quality (Moran, 2008).  Liu et al. (2006) explains alterations such as these to the Inuit people’s daily life and dieting have resulted in rising health concerns and increased risks for the metabolic syndrome (MetS).

     Traditional Inuit diets consisted of seal, caribou, walrus, and fish.  These are high protein high fat but low carbohydrate sources of food.  When properly prepared these foods are able to yield all essential nutrients (Moran, 2008). Traditionally obtained foods offer mainly polyunsaturated fats conducive to improved health and protein for muscle tissue (Moran, 2008).  Traditional Inuit health profiles describe them as having low blood pressure, low blood cholesterol, and lean body mass (Moran, 2008).  Alluding to the effectiveness of their nutritional strategies.  Absorbing western culture has caused Inuit’s of the present to consume larger numbers of calories in carbohydrate form like cereal, breads, rice, and sugar (Moran, 2008).  In addition according to Moran (2008) over half the fat presently utilized by Inuit’s is imported in the form of hydrogenated shortenings and margarine otherwise known as saturated fat.   This leads Inuit’s in the direction of the previously mentioned MetS and in the opposite direction of their predecessors.

     Liu et al. (2006) and Moran (2008) both agree that in the past half-century Inuit’s have undergone notable changes in their lifestyles.  Shifting from a once physically challenging nomadic lifestyle with changing caloric intake needs to a now sedentary lifestyle with relatively high caloric intakes (Jorgensen, Glumer, Bjerregaard, Gyntelberg, Jorgensen, Borch-Johnsen, 2003).  This shift has caused increases in Anemia (Moran, 2008), and the metabolic syndrome constituting obesity, hypertension, glucose intolerance, and dyslipidemia (Liu et al., 2006); all of which are risk factors for cardiovascular disease.  None of which will be helped by the lower air quality fostered with in the new less healthy shelters of modern Inuit’s (Moran, 2008).  Also closely associated with MetS are coronary heart disease and stroke.  Jorgensen et al. (2003) stated that recent studies of the Inuit show high prevalence of diabetes and hypertension where previously there was none observed.  In-activity in this culture coupled with high calorie diets is steering the Inuit’s into an Obesity epidemic (Liu et al., 2006).  Lack of hard labor such as the traditional hunting, trapping, fishing, etc. due to newly adopted technologies has stripped the Inuit’s of severely needed survival dependent physical activity with no urgent motives to maintain a high level of physical fitness or preserve health. 

 

 

Moran, E. (2008) Human Adaptability: An Introduction to Ecological Anthropology. Westview Press, Colorado, 473 pp.

 

Liu, J., Hanely, A.J., Young, T.K., Harris, S.B., Zinman, B. (2006). Characteristics and prevalence of the metabolic syndrome among three ethnic groups in Canada. International Journal of Obesity, 30, 669-676.

 

Jorgensen, M.E., Glumer, C., Bjerregaard, P., Gyntelberg, F., Jorgensen, T., Borch-Johnsen,K. (2003). Obesity and central fat pattern among Greenland Inuit and general population of denmark: Relationship to metabolic risk factors.  International Journal of Obesity, 27, 1507-1515