SOUTH vs. NORTH

Canada is home to regional differences. Some are cultural, linguistic, quirky, amusing or annoying. But, the most alarming disparity is between the south’s affluence and the north’s heart-rending poverty, extreme hunger and emerging health issues. So stark is the contrast that it’s hard to accept that such extremes could exist in the same Canada. Perhaps it’s no surprise that the life expectancy of Arctic Canadians is 13 years less than the national average.

When you next shop for groceries, take a moment to consider the availability of everything you want and the cost of filling just one bag. Then, compare that to the scarcity and exorbitant price of nutritious food in the Canadian Arctic – where filling that same grocery bag costs $100 - $150.

In case you missed it, here is an abridged version of Peggy Curran’s article in The Gazette (August 31, 2011) that explains the findings of a study conducted by McGill University and brings additional perspective to the cycle and relationships between poverty, hunger and disease.

“Canadian Inuit going hungry: McGill study


BY PEGGY CURRAN, THE GAZETTE


MONTREAL - Six out of 10 Inuit in Canada's Far North don’t get enough to eat or are eating the wrong things, says a comprehensive study by a team of McGill University researchers. They warn preventive measures are desperately needed to help ward off diabetes, heart disease and other ailments which already plague other aboriginal peoples in Canada and the U.S.

Increasingly, Inuit are shifting away from the traditional foods hunters brought home. But researchers found people living in remote villages often cannot find or afford the fruits, vegetables, grains and dairy products which make up the best part of a healthy southern diet.

“Poverty and associated food insecurity coupled with a transition away from local nutrient-rich food resources represents a dual nutritional burden on indigenous peoples globally,” cautions McGill epidemiologist Grace Egeland in the study published in the latest issue of Journal of Nutrition. “A nutrition transition is occurring in arctic communities with consequences for increased obesity and diet-sensitive chronic diseases.”

Egeland headed up the health survey which travelled to Canada’s most remote communities, where Egeland’s team of 40 nurses, nutritionists, lab technicians and bilingual interviewers met with 2,595 people from 1,901 households, conducting blood tests and asking participants basic questions about what they had eaten in the last 24 hours.

Their findings show a very high prevalence of food insecurity in Canada's Arctic. The term food insecurity covers a broad range of nutritional issues – from having poor quality food to eating less, skipping meals and going hungry.

Being insecure was associated with low hemoglobin, a marker for anemia, poor iron levels and high levels of trans-fats. Researchers found those who weren’t eating traditional foods had lower levels of protein, iron, vitamin A and C and were consuming more sodium, carbohydrates and saturated fat.

Egeland hopes their findings will be used to help prevent “an epidemic in Western chronic diseases” in Canada’s Arctic communities, citing the high preponderance of type 2 diabetes in aboriginal communities across Canada and the United States.

Last year, Egeland, associate professor at the Centre for Indigenous Peoples’ Nutrition and Environment at McGill’s Macdonald campus, released a study which found seven out of 10 preschoolers in Nunavut lived in homes where there wasn’t enough to eat.”

Please care enough to become part of the solution. Help us to help relieve the poverty and suffering of our fellow Canadians. Donate funds and/or volunteer. Contact us now!

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