Food insecurity, vitamin D insufficiency and respiratory infections among Inuit children

• Published in: International Journal of Circumpolar Health
• Main Authors: Sze Man Tse, Hope Weiler, Tom Kovesi
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Taylor & Francis Group 2016
• Subjects: food security; vitamin D; Inuit; bronchiolitis; lower respiratory tract infections; crowding; Arctic medicine. Tropical medicine; RC955-962; Arctic; Nunavut; Canada; Circumpolar Health; International Journal of Circumpolar Health; inuit
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.3402/ijch.v75.29954; https://doaj.org/article/06adc7fc0bae47318f0ad971c74857dd

Background: Food insecurity, vitamin D deficiency and lower respiratory tract infections are highly prevalent conditions among Inuit children. However, the relationship between these conditions has not been examined in this population. Objective: The objective of this study was to examine the relationship between food insecurity and severe respiratory infections before age 2 years and health centre visits for a respiratory problem in the past year. We also explored the relationship between serum vitamin D status and respiratory outcomes in this population. Design: We included children aged 3–5 years who participated in a cross-sectional survey of the health of preschool Inuit children in Nunavut, Canada, from 2007 to 2008 (n=388). Parental reports of severe respiratory infections in the first 2 years of life and health care visits in the past 12 months were assessed through a questionnaire. Child and adult food security were assessed separately and serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 levels were measured in a subgroup of participants (n=279). Multivariate logistic regression was performed to assess the association between food security, vitamin D and each of the 2 respiratory outcomes. Results: Child and adult food insecurity measures were not significantly associated with adverse respiratory outcomes. Household crowding [odds ratio (OR)=1.51, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.09–2.09, p=0.01 for the child food security model] and higher birth weight (OR=1.21, 95% CI: 1.02–1.43, p=0.03) were associated with reported severe chest infections before age 2 years while increasing age was associated with decreased odds of reported health care visits for a respiratory problem (OR=0.66, 95% CI: 0.48–0.91, p=0.02). Neither vitamin D insufficiency nor deficiency was associated with these respiratory outcomes. Conclusions: Using a large cross-sectional survey of Inuit children, we found that household crowding, but not food security or vitamin D levels, was associated with adverse respiratory outcomes. Further studies are warranted to ...