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28 January 2019

Lecture: Lifestyle Factors as Determinants of Health in Arctic Communities

Author/Compiled by
Yury Sumarokov, Northern State Medical University, Russia
Executive Summary

Arctic indigenous communities endured many forced lifestyle changes during the last decades. These changes are especially related to indigenous mental health. Many factors during colonial and post-colonial history created several health problems like addiction, depression, and suicides. 

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Background
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Mulvad concluded that Indigenous peoples use multifactorial processes to define and understand the circumstances of their life, rather than taking a problem-specific approach. Many behavioral differences between Indigenous and non-Indigenous populations are based on their different cultural values, and any damage to or pressure on the cultural values of Indigenous peoples may lead to an increase in depression, violence, addiction problems, and suicides. Over the past two hundred years, around and within Indigenous communities, traditional ways of life have been slowly destroyed.

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Learning objectives
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At the end of this lecture students will be able to:

  • Understand the role of colonial and post-colonial history events in lifestyle changes and mental health of indigenous people in the Arctic.
  • Understand the relevance of alcohol in suicides among the indigenous people.
  • Define the risk-factors and protective factors of suicides in the indigenous people.
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Lecture
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Library References

Suicides in the Indigenous and Non-indigenous Populations in the Nenets Autonomous Okrug

This articles describes suicide rates in the indigenous and non-indigenous populations of the Nenets Autonomous Okrug (NAO) in 2002 - 2012, as well as associated socio-demographic characteristics. Suicide rates in the NAO were substantially higher among the indigenous Nenets population than the non-indigenous population, and were associated with different socio-demographic characteristics.

SUMAROKOV, Y. A. et al. (2014): Suicides in the Indigenous and Non-indigenous Populations in the Nenets Autonomous Okrug. In: International Journal of Circumpolar Health: Volume 73 URL [Accessed: 05.06.2018]

Variations in suicide method and in suicide occurrence by season and day of the week in Russia and the Nenets Autonomous Okrug, Northwestern Russia: a retrospective population-based mortality study

SUMAROKOV, YA. ; BRENN, T. ; KUDRYAVTSEV, AV. ; NILSSEN, O. (2015): Variations in suicide method and in suicide occurrence by season and day of the week in Russia and the Nenets Autonomous Okrug, Northwestern Russia: a retrospective population-based mortality study. In: BMC Psychiatry: Volume 15 URL [Accessed: 19.12.2018] PDF
Further Readings

Comparative Review of Circumpolar Health Systems

Health care for remote, sparsely populated communities in the circumpolar North faces substantial organizational, financial, logistical, technical, and human resource challenges. Circumpolar regions share many common features but have evolved vastly different health care systems and policies. Identifying, evaluating and comparing approaches to policy development, best practices and successful models across the various regions represent a potentially useful strategy to improve and strengthen northern health systems.

YOUNG, K. and MARCHILDON, G. (2012): Comparative Review of Circumpolar Health Systems. International Association of Circumpolar Health Publishers URL [Accessed: 07.06.2018]

Arctic Human Development Report (AHDR)

Arctic Human Development Report

The goals of this report are to provide an update to the first AHDR (2004) in terms of an assessment of the state of Arctic human development; to highlight the major trends and changes unfolding related to the various issues and thematic areas of human development in the Arctic over the past decade; and, based on this as- sessment, to identify policy relevant conclusions and key gaps in knowledge, new and emerging Arctic success stories, and important AHDR-II follow-up activities.

BANKES, N. et al. Larsen, J. N. and Fondahl, G. (2014): Arctic Human Development Report (AHDR). TemaNord URL [Accessed: 07.06.2018]

AMAP Assessment 2015: Human Health in the Arctic

The 2015 Human Health Assessment Report follows three previous AMAP assessments on human health (AMAP 1998, 2003, 2009) and represents the current knowledge base after 25 years of focused study. This report includes new knowledge, updates and fills information gaps identified in past reports, and focuses attention on the most recent integrated scientific knowledge related to environmental contaminants and human health. It does not update information concerning the levels and effects of radioactivity and UV-radiation; these topics were addressed in the first comprehensive AMAP Assessment Report (AMAP 1998). The AMAP 2015 collects and discuss all the data from the relevant cohorts and surveys carried out in Inuits groups of Alaska, Canada and Greenland. It describes the projects, the results as the levels of contaminants found in the areas, the health that these contaminants can cause, future risks, and risk communication.

DONALDSON, S. SYMON, C. (2015): AMAP Assessment 2015: Human Health in the Arctic. Oslo, Norway: Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Programme (AMAP) URL [Accessed: 07.06.2018]
Training Material

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