Skip to main content

Main menu

  • Home
  • Content
    • Current issue
    • Past issues
    • Early releases
    • Collections
    • Sections
    • Blog
    • Infographics & illustrations
    • Podcasts
    • COVID-19 Articles
  • Authors
    • Overview for authors
    • Submission guidelines
    • Submit a manuscript
    • Forms
    • Editorial process
    • Editorial policies
    • Peer review process
    • Publication fees
    • Reprint requests
    • Open access
  • CMA Members
    • Overview for members
    • Earn CPD Credits
    • Print copies of CMAJ
  • Subscribers
    • General information
    • View prices
  • Alerts
    • Email alerts
    • RSS
  • JAMC
    • À propos
    • Numéro en cours
    • Archives
    • Sections
    • Abonnement
    • Alertes
    • Trousse média 2022
  • CMAJ JOURNALS
    • CMAJ Open
    • CJS
    • JAMC
    • JPN

User menu

Search

  • Advanced search
CMAJ
  • CMAJ JOURNALS
    • CMAJ Open
    • CJS
    • JAMC
    • JPN
CMAJ

Advanced Search

  • Home
  • Content
    • Current issue
    • Past issues
    • Early releases
    • Collections
    • Sections
    • Blog
    • Infographics & illustrations
    • Podcasts
    • COVID-19 Articles
  • Authors
    • Overview for authors
    • Submission guidelines
    • Submit a manuscript
    • Forms
    • Editorial process
    • Editorial policies
    • Peer review process
    • Publication fees
    • Reprint requests
    • Open access
  • CMA Members
    • Overview for members
    • Earn CPD Credits
    • Print copies of CMAJ
  • Subscribers
    • General information
    • View prices
  • Alerts
    • Email alerts
    • RSS
  • JAMC
    • À propos
    • Numéro en cours
    • Archives
    • Sections
    • Abonnement
    • Alertes
    • Trousse média 2022
  • Visit CMAJ on Facebook
  • Follow CMAJ on Twitter
  • Follow CMAJ on Pinterest
  • Follow CMAJ on Youtube
  • Follow CMAJ on Instagram
Research

Food insecurity among Inuit preschoolers: Nunavut Inuit Child Health Survey, 2007–2008

Grace M. Egeland, Angela Pacey, Zirong Cao and Isaac Sobol
CMAJ February 23, 2010 182 (3) 243-248; DOI: https://doi.org/10.1503/cmaj.091297
Grace M. Egeland
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
Angela Pacey
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
Zirong Cao
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
Isaac Sobol
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
  • Article
  • Figures & Tables
  • Responses
  • Metrics
  • PDF
Loading

Abstract

Background: Food security (i.e., a condition in which all people, at all times, have physical and economic access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food to meet their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life) has been noted to be lower in indigenous communities in Canada. We investigated the prevalence of inadequate food security, or food insecurity, among Inuit households with preschool children.

Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional survey of the health status of 388 randomly selected Inuit children aged three to five years in 16 Nunavut communities during the period from 2007 to 2008. From the survey data, we classified levels of food insecurity specifically among children. We also classified levels of overall food insecurity of the household of each child. We calculated the weighted prevalence of levels of child food insecurity and of household food insecurity.

Results: Nearly 70% of Inuit preschoolers resided in households rated as food insecure (69.6%; 95% confidence interval [CI] 64.7%–74.6%). Overall, 31.0% of children were moderately food insecure, and 25.1% were severely food insecure, with a weighted prevalence of child food insecurity of 56.1% (95% CI 51.0%–61.3%). Primary care-givers in households in which children were severely food insecure reported experiencing times in the past year when their children skipped meals (75.8%), went hungry (90.4%) or did not eat for a whole day (60.1%). Primary caregivers in households in which children were moderately food insecure reported experiencing times in the past year when they worried food would run out (85.1%), when they fed their children less expensive food (95.1%) and when their children did not eat enough because there was no money for food (64.3%).

Interpretation: We observed a high prevalence of household food insecurity, with a substantial proportion of children with severely food insecure status. Interventions are needed to ensure a healthy start in life for Inuit preschoolers.

View Full Text
PreviousNext
Back to top

In this issue

Canadian Medical Association Journal: 182 (3)
CMAJ
Vol. 182, Issue 3
23 Feb 2010
  • Table of Contents
  • Index by author

Article tools

Respond to this article
Print
Download PDF
Article Alerts
To sign up for email alerts or to access your current email alerts, enter your email address below:
Email Article

Thank you for your interest in spreading the word on CMAJ.

NOTE: We only request your email address so that the person you are recommending the page to knows that you wanted them to see it, and that it is not junk mail. We do not capture any email address.

Enter multiple addresses on separate lines or separate them with commas.
Food insecurity among Inuit preschoolers: Nunavut Inuit Child Health Survey, 2007–2008
(Your Name) has sent you a message from CMAJ
(Your Name) thought you would like to see the CMAJ web site.
CAPTCHA
This question is for testing whether or not you are a human visitor and to prevent automated spam submissions.
Citation Tools
Food insecurity among Inuit preschoolers: Nunavut Inuit Child Health Survey, 2007–2008
Grace M. Egeland, Angela Pacey, Zirong Cao, Isaac Sobol
CMAJ Feb 2010, 182 (3) 243-248; DOI: 10.1503/cmaj.091297

Citation Manager Formats

  • BibTeX
  • Bookends
  • EasyBib
  • EndNote (tagged)
  • EndNote 8 (xml)
  • Medlars
  • Mendeley
  • Papers
  • RefWorks Tagged
  • Ref Manager
  • RIS
  • Zotero
‍ Request Permissions
Share
Food insecurity among Inuit preschoolers: Nunavut Inuit Child Health Survey, 2007–2008
Grace M. Egeland, Angela Pacey, Zirong Cao, Isaac Sobol
CMAJ Feb 2010, 182 (3) 243-248; DOI: 10.1503/cmaj.091297
Digg logo Reddit logo Twitter logo Facebook logo Google logo Mendeley logo
  • Tweet Widget
  • Facebook Like

Jump to section

  • Article
    • Abstract
    • Methods
    • Results
    • Interpretation
    • Footnotes
    • REFERENCES
  • Figures & Tables
  • Responses
  • Metrics
  • PDF

Related Articles

  • Highlights
  • Focus Inuit research agenda on best outcomes
  • Birth outcomes in the Inuit-inhabited areas of Canada
  • PubMed
  • Google Scholar

Cited By...

  • Assessment of the implementation fidelity of the Arctic Char Distribution Project in Nunavik, Quebec
  • Hospital admissions for lower respiratory tract infections among infants in the Canadian Arctic: a cohort study
  • Validity of a Single Item Food Security Questionnaire in Arctic Canada
  • Dietary Advice on Inuit Traditional Food Use Needs to Balance Benefits and Risks of Mercury, Selenium, and n3 Fatty Acids
  • Traditional Food Intake Is Correlated with Iron Stores in Canadian Inuit Men
  • The Prevalence of Food Insecurity Is High and the Diet Quality Poor in Inuit Communities
  • Food Insecurity and Nutrition Transition Combine to Affect Nutrient Intakes in Canadian Arctic Communities
  • Vitamin D Status of Inuit Preschoolers Reflects Season and Vitamin D Intake
  • Adequate Nutrient Intakes Are Associated with Traditional Food Consumption in Nunavut Inuit Children Aged 3-5 Years
  • Indigenous health
  • Google Scholar

More in this TOC Section

  • The experiences of family members of deceased organ donors and suggestions to improve the donation process: a qualitative study
  • Uncovering SARS-COV-2 vaccine uptake and COVID-19 impacts among First Nations, Inuit and Métis Peoples living in Toronto and London, Ontario
  • Antiviral drug treatment for nonsevere COVID-19: a systematic review and network meta-analysis
Show more Research

Similar Articles

Collections

  • Topics
    • Aboriginal health
    • Pediatrics
    • Public health

 

View Latest Classified Ads

Content

  • Current issue
  • Past issues
  • Collections
  • Sections
  • Blog
  • Podcasts
  • Alerts
  • RSS
  • Early releases

Information for

  • Advertisers
  • Authors
  • Reviewers
  • CMA Members
  • Media
  • Reprint requests
  • Subscribers

About

  • General Information
  • Journal staff
  • Editorial Board
  • Advisory Panels
  • Governance Council
  • Journal Oversight
  • Careers
  • Contact
  • Copyright and Permissions
  • Accessibiity
  • CMA Civility Standards
CMAJ Group

Copyright 2022, CMA Impact Inc. or its licensors. All rights reserved. ISSN 1488-2329 (e) 0820-3946 (p)

All editorial matter in CMAJ represents the opinions of the authors and not necessarily those of the Canadian Medical Association or its subsidiaries.

To receive any of these resources in an accessible format, please contact us at CMAJ Group, 500-1410 Blair Towers Place, Ottawa ON, K1J 9B9; p: 1-888-855-2555; e: cmajgroup@cmaj.ca

Powered by HighWire