Thank you.
Thank you for the opportunity to speak here today on Inuit concerns regarding childhood obesity.
I will provide a brief background on Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami. ITK is the national Inuit organization in Canada representing Inuit from the four Inuit regions: Nunatsiavut, Labrador; Nunavik, northern Quebec; Nunavut; and the Inuvialuit settlement region in the Northwest Territories. ITK is primarily an advocacy organization to ensure Inuit rights and interests are protected and promoted.
ITK receives direction from the National Inuit Committee on Health, also termed NICOH, which provides technical guidance and recommendations related to national Inuit health, care review, reform, and policy development on health issues to the ITK board of directors. The committee ensures that Inuit land claim regions and the National Inuit Youth Council are informed and are in a position to make informed decisions on behalf of their members.
As a representative of NICOH, I would like to discuss the issue of childhood obesity in Inuit communities. Inuit childhood obesity is affected by many factors and determinants of health. Although there is a lack of Inuit-specific data, we do have anecdotal evidence indicating that childhood obesity is becoming an issue in Inuit communities. These contributions are exacerbated by the rapid change in the way of life brought on by colonization. An increase in sedentary activities combined with an increase in the amount of unhealthy junk food eaten by children and youth lead to devastating effects.
It is felt that children and youth are becoming addicted to pop. Junk foods are predominately displayed at stores and are readily accessible, in comparison to country foods. Generally, junk food is cheaper to buy with allowance money than fresh fruit, which is why children are purchasing so much. Often you can buy pop cheaper than milk. Statistically, in Iqaluit you can purchase a can of pop for $2 and a personal-sized carton of milk for $3.25 with tax. It must also be remembered that half the population of Inuit is under the age of 20. With such a large youth population who are becoming increasingly dependent on junk food, you can see the seriousness of it.
In relation to data, it is difficult to provide evidence for the extent of childhood obesity among Inuit children. Although many surveys provide data for all Canadian children, they do not provide data for Inuit children specifically. Most government surveys are not designed to provide data for Inuit regions. Both the biomass index and the waist-to-hip ratio are questionable, as there are uncertainties about whether national indicators accurately reflect Inuit stature. Inuit babies generally have higher birth weights, so this also may not be a relevant health indicator for Inuit.
We know the rate of obesity is affected by other determinants of health, which I would like to take this opportunity to touch on. To begin with, there is the issue of poverty. Median incomes for Inuit are much lower than those of non-Inuit. In 2001 the median income for Inuit was $13,637, in comparison to $22,136 for non-Inuit. This gap has widened significantly when you consider how much the cost of living in the north actually is.
Unemployment is three times higher for Inuit than non-Inuit and wages are lower than for non-Inuit. Families often end up purchasing the cheaper foods, which are higher in carbohydrates and low in protein, rather than fresh fruits and vegetables. They essentially get more worth for their money if they purchase the high-carbohydrate foods.
More frequently, both parents in Inuit households are working, which means that children are often responsible for preparing their own meals, and kids don't often make the healthiest choices. Junk foods are accepted in Inuit communities. An example would be in Hopedale, Nunatsiavut. They ran out of potato chips so they sent a plane to Nain, Nunatsiavut, to restock. One flight comes in every week for fresh vegetables, but not another one is sent out to get more. You can see the demand there is for potato chips and not fresh foods.
This feeds into the issue of food insecurity. The risks of dietary transition that include more market food and less traditional and country food are recognized to include risks of greater obesity and susceptibility to chronic diseases. The high cost associated with hunting means the traditional country food is also becoming more expensive. With lower incomes, you obviously can't purchase boats and skidoos, and the gas prices in the north are ridiculous.
The food security of Inuit is also affected by other factors, including climate change and contaminants. Climate change can cause changes in the availability of food plants and in migration patterns and breeding of animals that are often hunted in those regions. Regarding contaminants, there is decreased confidence in the safety of traditional and country foods due to the high contaminant level in many animals. In Nunavik, people spend up to 40% of their income on food. Over half the population, 56%, report food insecurity in Nunavut.
With regard to legislation, although country food has been shown to be healthier, day cares and schools in some Inuit regions cannot provide it to children. For example, in Nunatsiavut, food regulations won't allow them to put the food in the day cares as it's not been tested appropriately.
In many regions you are not allowed to sell country food, and there are also barriers to sharing food between Arctic regions. In regions where you can sell country food, there are some promising practices. In Nunavik the day cares are planning to provide 85% of the required nutrients per day, with 30% to 40% being filled by country food.
Through the Canada prenatal nutrition program, in some regions char and caribou are provided to pregnant women. This is done in Nunavik.
Regarding the topic of schools and recreation facilities, there is less time allocated to physical activity in schools, but in most northern communities there's also a lack of recreation facilities and activities outside of the school. Due to rising costs, many children do not have the opportunity to take part in traditional activities such as hunting and fishing, which have, in the past, kept Inuit healthy and active.
Considering the reality of high unemployment rates, low standards and high costs of living, and low wages, simply providing a tax credit to all Canadians will serve to increase the gap that already exists between Inuit and mainstream Canada. With obstacles such as funding, human resources, infrastructure, remoteness, elevated prices, etc., not being addressed, the children's fitness tax credit will not be an effective tool for increasing the physical fitness of Inuit children.
Underlying all of these issues is a need to continue to increase the human resources capacity of Inuit in these areas. We are in high need of recreation coordinators, dieticians, nutritionists, etc.
To conclude, these are the recommendations put forth by NICOH on the issues of childhood obesity in Inuit communities.
There is a need to develop baseline data for childhood obesity among Inuit and a need to develop an appropriate measure that works for all Inuit to fill the gaps. There is a need for Inuit engagement in program design and delivery in a continuum of services, which could decrease the effect of obesity on Inuit children.
These services must be a part of not only the health system, but must also reflect the changes needed in educational, economic, and environmental systems. This also means reviewing and providing Inuit input into proposed legislation and tax reforms, to ensure that the outcome that is expected does not negatively impact Inuit, but rather, ideally, positively impacts them.
There needs to be a review of the effectiveness and sustainability of existing programs and services aimed at childhood obesity.
Thank you.
We will also follow with briefing notes.
I appreciate the opportunity to provide the Inuit perspective here today.