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Presented at the 15th International Congress on Circumpolar Health in Fairbanks, Alaska, August 5-10th 2012, the following outlines the intersection of history with the transition from Inuit traditional to Western nutritional practices. Abstract: Since transitioning to western dietary practices, rates of chronic illness such as cardiovascular disease and diabetes have been steadily increasing in Inuit populations. Some studies have shown that when Inuit consumed a traditional diet, instances of cardiovascular disease, cancer, and type 2 diabetes were practically negligible. The purpose of this paper is to examine the historical events and attitudes of corporations, colonial officials and health care professionals who contributed to rapid changes in Inuit diet, and subsequently, Inuit health. I will delineate how changes to traditional diets were motivated by concepts such as capitalism, control and convenience, instead of informed by nutritional concerns. To outline the history of health and nutrition so, I will utilize historical primary documents from doctors, nutrition specialists, traders, religious leaders and national and territorial government personnel who worked in the eastern Arctic from the 1930s-1960s. Given that Health Canada’s “four food group” approach has undergone little change since originating in a time period that disregarded culture, health and the colonial impacts of applying western diets to Inuit populations, I will use contemporary examples to also make a case for reformulation of Health Canada’s approach. [email protected]
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15th International Congress on Circumpolar Health, Fairbanks Alaska, August 7, 2012
Western Diets and the Inuit of the Eastern Arctic, 1935-
1959: A History of Change
April Dutheil, BA (Hons.), Department of SociologyUniversity of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Theory
Benefits of Traditional Inuit Diet
1935: “No traces of cancer or diabetes were found in any of the examinations carried out among the Eskimos...”
Dr. I.M. Rabinowitch’s medical survey of 389 Inuit (over 4,000 biological samples) from Eastern Arctic
1940s: “Nearly all reports agree that while on native foods the Indians and Eskimos are healthier.”
Dr. L.B. Pett, Chief of the Nutrition Division at the Department of National Health and Welfare
Inuit Nutrition: Low Carbohydrate
Western Nutrition: Four Food Group Approach
How did this happen?
Profit motive
Control
Fear of dependency
Climate
Profit Motive
Profit Motive
1940s: “Increased contact with whites and increased time taken to trap instead of getting food, had increased the use of, and even dependance on white man’s foods by both Indians and Eskimos...In short, under some circumstances some Indians are so busy getting money (by trapping chiefly) to buy their food at the trading post that they have no time to obtain some of their native foods, which would supplement the foods they buy.”
Dr. L.B. Pett, Chief of the Nutrition Division at the Department of National Health and Welfare
Profit Motive
1936: “Finally, a word about keeping the Eskimo alive...There is no doubt that the Eskimo is essential to the fur trader...With millions invested in the Arctic...this Company has another reason to keep the Eskimo alive and healthy.”
Dr. I.M. Rabinowitch, “Clinical and Other Observations on Canadian Eskimos in the Eastern Arctic”
Profit Motive
1936: “A sick trapper, therefore, means not only a smaller supply of furs but also that the trader must support the family as well as the trapper. A dead trapper means support of the family for an indefinite period, with no prospects whatever of any comparison.”
Dr. I.M. Rabinowitch, “Clinical and Other Observations on Canadian Eskimos in the Eastern Arctic”
Profit Motive
Control
Control
Control
Control
1947: “The traders are working with the Police to help you and your family, and the King has instructed them to issue goods when it is necessary. He does not wish you to become lazy and expect to receive goods at any time. You are to continue to work hard at hunting and trapping...When the foxes are scarce and you are unable to obtain food, clothing and other things for your children, the King will pay the trader to give you these things...”
Bureau of Northwest Territories and Yukon Affairs. The Book of Wisdom for Eskimo.
Fear of Dependancy
1948: “Recognized as one of the most difficult tasks facing local administration in the field is the handling of relief rations. To allow too much assistance to any one individual has a tendency to encourage indigency, whereas allowing too little may result in impairment of health.”
R.A. Gibson, Deputy Commissioner to Traders, “Issue of Relief Rations to Eskimos.”
Climate
1947: “You will understand that any foods used by Eskimo must be relatively inexpensive, easily prepared with a minimum expenditure of fuel, must not be subject to damage by freezing and must, as far as possible, be compact and portable on sleds in winter and by boat in summer. A long list of articles to comprise a balanced diet would not be practical for Eskimo.... Flour of course, is very convenient from this point of view.”
R.A. Gibson, Deputy Commissioner to Dr. G.D. Cameron, Deputy Minister of National Health and Welfare, Administration of the Northwest Territories
Why does history matter?
Inuit psycho-social & cultural relation to food
Policy & programming
Role of social, economic & natural environments alongside “good nutrition”
Acknowledgements
Dr. Frank James Tester, School of Social Work, University of British Columbia
References
Bureau of Northwest Territories and Yukon Affairs. The Book of Wisdom for Eskimo . (Ottawa, Ontario: Department of Mines and Resources, Lands, Parks and Forest Branch, 1947).
Grace Egeland et al., “Back to the Future - Using Traditional Food and Knowledge to Promote a Healthy Future among Inuit,” in Indigenous Peoples’ Food Systems: the Many Dimensions of Culture, Diversity, Environment and Health , ed. Harriet Kuhnlein, Bill Erasmus and Dina Spigelski (New York: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, 2009), http://www.mcgill.ca/files/dietetics/INUIT_E1_inuit_dtp3.pdf.
Frank Tester and Peter Kulchyski, Tammarniit (Mistakes): Inuit Relocation in the Eastern Arctic 1939-63 , (Vancouver: UBC Press, 1994).
R.A. Gibson, Deputy Commissioner to Traders, R.C.M. Police, Missionaries and Doctors, “Issue of Relief Rations to Eskimos,” Territories Administration, Department of Mines and Resources. 22 March 1948, box 15, N 92-023, Alex Stevenson Collection, Government of the Northwest Territories Archives.
R.A. Gibson, Deputy Commissioner to Dr. G.D. Cameron, Deputy Minister of National Health and Welfare, Administration of the Northwest Territories, 16 Jan. 1947, pt. 1, file: 851-X6-X600, vol. 2997, RG 29, LAC.
Health Canada. Canada's Food Guide for First Nations, Inuit and Métis . (Ottawa, Ontario: Health Canada, 2007).
Dr. Israel M. Rabinowitch, “Cancer or Diabetes Symptoms Not Found in Canadian Eskimo,” Montreal Gazette , 30 Sept.1935, in pt. 2, file 8258, vol. 862, RG 85-C-1-9, LAC.
Dr. Israel M. Rabinowitch, “Clinical and Other Observations on Canadian Eskimos in the Eastern Arctic,” Canadian Medical Association Journal 34, no.5 (1936).
L.B. Pett, Ph.D., M.D., “Nutrition in Northern Canada,” n.d., pt. 1, file 851-X6-X600, vol.2997, RG 29, Library and Archives Canada (LAC). Although this document has no date, it is likely from the late 1940s.
Questions
April Dutheil, BA (Hons.), Department of SociologyUniversity of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
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