Traditional food and monetary access to market-food: correlates of food insecurity among Inuit preschoolers

Abstract

Objectives. To evaluate correlates of food insecurity among Inuit preschoolers. Study design. Cross-sectional health survey. Methods. Correlates of food insecurity were assessed in 3-5 year old children (n=388) residing in 16 Nunavut communities (2007)(2008) in whom a high prevalence of child food insecurity (56%) has been documented. A bilingual team conducted interviews, including 24-hour dietary recalls and past-year food security assessment involving monetary access to market foods. Results. Children residing in child food insecure homes were more likely to have consumed traditional food (TF) (51.7% vs. 39.9%, p≤0.01), and less likely to have consumed any milk (52.2% vs. 73.2%, p≤0.001) compared to children in child food secure homes. Median healthy eating index scores were significantly lower (77.1 vs. 79.9, p≤0.01) and sugar drink intake higher (429 vs. 377 g/day, p≤0.05) in children from child food insecure than food secure households. Children that consumed TF had higher protein and lower carbohydrate intake (p≤0.05) and tendencies for a lower prevalence of iron deficiency (plasma ferritin <12 µg/l; p≤0.10) regardless of food security status. A borderline significant interaction of TF by food security status (p≤0.10) was observed where the percent of anemia (hemoglobin <110 and <115 g/l for 3-4 and 5 yr. olds, respectively) was highest among children from child food insecure homes who consumed no TF. Conclusions. TF and market food contribute to food security and both need to be considered in food security assessments. Support systems and dietary interventions for families with young children are needed.

Prevalence of affirmative responses to questions of food insecurity: International Polar Year Inuit Health Survey, 2007–2008

“…Others have noted the high cost of food and pervasive rates of poverty commonly experienced by communities in the Canadian Arctic as determinants of diet quality and food insecurity (16,31,32). Inuit are highly vulnerable to food insecurity as a result of geographic location; high levels of under-employment and unemployment; and low income, all of which affect the purchase of perishable, healthy food from local stores and limit the purchase of equipment needed to maintain traditional activities (2,3,7,31,32).…”

“…Dependence on informal, traditional social support networks may play an important role in filling the gap between a household's economic constraints and its accessibility to country food. Country foods are rich in nutrients, contribute to higher dietary quality, promote good health and provide a sense of wellness that comes from the participation in cultural activities (16)(17)(18)31,33,34).…”

“…Without proper access to nutritious and sufficient food, a population's health and well-being is compromised (11,12,(14)(15)(16)). Numerous studies have described the nutritional and cultural transitions under way in Canada's Inuit communities and their implications for increasing the burden of disease associated with poor diet (17)(18)(19)(20).…”

Impacts of place and social spaces on traditional food systems in southwestern Ontario

“…Across the globe, various processes of environmental dispossession have had the effect of limiting or reducing access to traditional foods among Indigenous populations, leading to the gradual replacement of these foods with marketed or pre-manufactured products. This transition has had dramatic consequences for dietary quality and cultural identity, along with the health and maintenance of TFS (Cidro, Adekunle, Peters, & Martens, 2015;Egeland, Williamson-Bathory, Johnson-Down, & Sobol, 2011;Johnson-Down & Egeland, 2010). In Canada, only about a quarter of First Nation adults consume wild meat from their local environments and even fewer (18.6%) include wild plants and berries as part of their diets (FNIGC, 2012).…”

IPY Inuit Health Survey speaks to need to address inadequate housing, food insecurity and nutrition transition

“…The transition away from traditional food has consequences for diet quality, nutrient intakes and nutritional status (10)(11)(12). For example, we found that on days when traditional food was consumed 22.7% of energy came from protein and 37.2% of energy came from carbohydrates as opposed to 13.9% of energy from protein and 50.8% of energy from carbohydrate when no traditional food was consumed (10).…”