Assessing risk of mercury exposure and nutritional benefits of consumption of caribou (Rangifer tarandus) in the Vuntut Gwitchin First Nation community of Old Crow, Yukon, Canada

Schuster, Roseanne C.; Gamberg, Mary; Dickson, Cindy; Chan, Hing Man

doi:10.1016/j.envres.2011.05.025

Cited by 13 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 27 publications

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“…Much research has been done on the health risks of contaminants, pollutants, and pathogens affecting subsistence species in the North, including contaminants in fish (Loring et al, 2010), marine mammals (Gadamus, 2013), and caribou (Schuster et al, 2011). Food safety is also being compromised in some communities because of the impacts of climate warming on traditional food storage cellars, and because of changing knowledge about food storage, moving away from traditional techniques to the use of plastic garbage sacks, Tupperware ™ , and other containers that are inadequate and unsafe for long-term food storage (Brubaker et al, 2011).…”

Section: Impacts Of Contaminants and Pathogens On The Quality Of Subsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Searching for Progress on Food Security in the North American North: A Research Synthesis and Meta-Analysis of the Peer-Reviewed Literature + Supplementary Appendix (See Article Tools)

Loring¹,

Gerlach²

2015

ARCTIC

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ABSTRACT. Food security is a global societal challenge, and one geographic region where food insecurity is increasing is the North American Arctic and Subarctic. In this paper we synthesize research on food security in this region; important precursors and early work include reports on the impacts of land claims, the cumulative effects of industrial development and environmental change, and the health impacts of the nutrition transition among Indigenous peoples. Building on these foundations, food security research in the North has followed a path similar to that taken in the global food security literature, beginning with nutritional adequacy and security of food supplies and then downscaling to a focus on issues at the livelihood and household level. Our meta-analysis of the peer-reviewed literature reveals many reasons why people are food-insecure: challenges such as remoteness, climate change, and the high costs of food and fuel all play important roles. However, the primary drivers of food insecurity that we identify in this review relate to governance and policy challenges that have been recognized and critiqued for decades. Recommendations for future research include an improved focus on participatory research and food security interventions that acknowledge and focus on supporting the rights of local peoples to pursue food security on their own terms. This paper is relevant in the context of climatic and environmental change because it captures the role of shifting political ecologies as increased geopolitical interests in the North appear to be obscuring the rights and needs of local peoples to access and control their own land and resources.Key words: Alaska Natives; Canada First Nations; climate change; development; food security; food sovereignty; governance; Indigenous peoples; social justice RÉSUMÉ. De par le monde, l'insécurité alimentaire constitue un enjeu du point de vue de la société. L'Arctique et la région subarctique de l'Amérique du Nord sont des régions géographiques où l'insécurité alimentaire prend de l'ampleur. Dans cette communication, nous faisons la synthèse des travaux de recherche effectués au sujet de la sécurité alimentaire dans cette région. Parmi les précurseurs et les premiers travaux importants réalisés à ce sujet, notons des rapports sur les incidences des revendications territoriales, les effets cumulatifs du développement industriel et des changements sur l'environnement, de même que les effets sur la santé découlant de la transition alimentaire chez les peuples indigènes. S'appuyant sur ces assises, les recherches sur la sécurité alimentaire dans le Nord ont été conçues ni plus ni moins comme les autres études en matière de sécurité alimentaire dans le monde. Les recherches ont d'abord porté sur le caractère adéquat de l'alimentation et sur la sécurité des approvisionnements alimentaires, après quoi elles se sont concentrées sur des enjeux plus spécifiques comme ceux propres aux moyens de subsistance et aux ménages. Notre méta-analyse de la documentation révisée par des ...

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Section: Impacts Of Contaminants and Pathogens On The Quality Of Subsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Searching for Progress on Food Security in the North American North: A Research Synthesis and Meta-Analysis of the Peer-Reviewed Literature + Supplementary Appendix (See Article Tools)

Loring¹,

Gerlach²

2015

ARCTIC

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“…Low human exposure to Pb, Cd, and Hg through consumption of reindeer meat and other edible reindeer tissues was demonstrated in Mid- and Northern Norway, although the Cd level exceeded the MPL for bovine animals by 52% in reindeer liver samples [6,26]. A study from Yukon, Canada showed that the risk of Hg exposure from caribou consumption is low, as HQs were <1 [5]. However, Makarov et al [29] investigated contamination of reindeer meat and offal in the Russian Far North and reported that the consumption of reindeer kidney by populations in the Murmansk Region, the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug, Kamchatka, Chukotka, Karelia, and Yakutia may result in a Cd intake that exceeds the TDI by more than three times.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Previous studies in northern populations have shown the nutritional benefits to health of consuming traditional foods, such as game meat and fat, dairy products, marine mammals, fish, wild berries, and edible plants [1,4,5]. Reindeer meat and offal are an important source of nutrients in the traditional diet of Arctic populations, but their consumption can be a route of heavy metal exposure [6].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Human health risk assessment of heavy metals from meat and offal of reindeer and cow in the Far North of European Russia

Unguryanu

Lyzhina

Mitrokhin

et al. 2022

Scand J Public Health

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Aims: This study aimed to compare the concentrations of heavy metals in reindeer and cow meat and offal originating from the Nenets Autonomous Okrug, Northwestern Russia, and to assess the risk to the health of the indigenous population associated with heavy metal intake due to the consumption of reindeer and cow. Methods: Lead, cadmium, mercury, and arsenic concentrations were measured in 39 muscle, 15 liver, and 14 kidney samples from reindeer and 33, 18, and 12 corresponding samples from cow in 2014–2016 using atomic absorption spectrometry. Estimated daily intake of investigated heavy metals, hazard quotient, hazard index and cancer risk were calculated. Results: Mean cadmium and mercury concentrations in reindeer liver and kidney exceeded the maximum permissible levels for bovine animals. However, the estimated daily intakes of heavy metals through consumption of reindeer and cow meat and offal were lower than tolerable daily intakes. Hazard quotient and hazard index values for heavy metals in reindeer and cow samples were <1. Hazard index values were in descending order: reindeer kidney (0.389)>reindeer muscle (0.382)>cow muscle (0.088)>reindeer liver (0.051)>cow kidney (0.012)>cow liver (0.004). The cancer risk related to the consumption of reindeer and cow meat and offal did not exceed acceptable levels. Conclusions: There is no human health risk associated with heavy metal intake due to the consumption of reindeer and cow meat and offal originating from the Nenets Autonomous Okrug.

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“…Yukon First Nations have taken on leadership roles in research both within their traditional territories and in national and international projects. Research led by and carried out in collaboration with Yukon First Nations, on topics ranging from contaminants to climate change to caribou, has contributed significantly to our knowledge of Yukon and shown how scientific, traditional, and local knowledge together can broaden and enrich our understanding more than one way of knowing on its own (e.g., Schuster et al, 2011;Wesche et al, 2011;Wolfe et al, 2011;Russel et al, 2013).…”

Section: Yukon First Nationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Science in the Yukon: Advancing a Vision for Evidence-based Decision Making

Ogden¹,

Schmidt²,

Dijken³

et al. 2016

ARCTIC

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Assessing risk of mercury exposure and nutritional benefits of consumption of caribou (Rangifer tarandus) in the Vuntut Gwitchin First Nation community of Old Crow, Yukon, Canada

Cited by 13 publications

References 27 publications

Searching for Progress on Food Security in the North American North: A Research Synthesis and Meta-Analysis of the Peer-Reviewed Literature + Supplementary Appendix (See Article Tools)

Searching for Progress on Food Security in the North American North: A Research Synthesis and Meta-Analysis of the Peer-Reviewed Literature + Supplementary Appendix (See Article Tools)

Human health risk assessment of heavy metals from meat and offal of reindeer and cow in the Far North of European Russia

Science in the Yukon: Advancing a Vision for Evidence-based Decision Making

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