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Introduction: Traditional food plays a vital role in the health and cultural identity of Indigenous populations worldwide. However, little is known about whether the traditional food of the Sámi (the only Indigenous people in the European Union) is associated with positive physical and mental health outcomes. This study examines the relationship between the consumption of traditional Sámi food - specifically reindeer and elk meat - and self-perceived physical and mental health among older Sámi adults in Sweden.

Methods: Using data from the 2021 SámiHET survey (n = 3,617), we analysed the consumption of traditional meat alongside health outcomes across different age and sex groups. Logistic regression models were used to assess associations between frequent consumption of reindeer or elk meat (more than once per week) and self-reported poor physical health or poor mental wellbeing.

Results: Although consumption of traditional meat declined slightly among the Sámi aged 75 and over, it remained significantly higher than the national average. Women and older adults reported lower intake than men and younger participants. Frequent consumption of reindeer or elk meat was associated with lower odds of poor mental wellbeing across all subgroups, even after adjusting for age, sex, education, and income.

Conclusion: These findings suggest that traditional Sámi food is associated with improved mental wellbeing, particularly among older Sámi adults. However, as this is a cross-sectional study, the association cannot be interpreted as causal. The underlying link may relate to the cultural significance of traditional foods. In this context, food could also serve as a proxy for cultural strength, a factor that previous research has identified as being important for the mental health of Indigenous peoples. Further research is needed to clarify the mechanisms behind these associations.

Título: Consumo de alimentos tradicionales y salud autopercibida entre personas Sámi mayores en Suecia

Introducción: La comida tradicional desempeña un papel fundamental en la salud y la identidad cultural de los pueblos indígenas en todo el mundo. Sin embargo, se sabe poco sobre si la alimentación tradicional de los Sámi (el único pueblo indígena de la Unión Europea) está asociada con resultados positivos en la salud física y mental. Este estudio examina la relación entre el consumo de alimentos tradicionales Sámi —en concreto, carne de reno y de alce— y la salud física y mental autopercibida entre personas Sámi mayores en Suecia.

Métodos: Utilizando datos de la encuesta SámiHET de 2021 (n = 3.617), analizamos el consumo de carne tradicional junto con los resultados de salud en distintos grupos de edad y sexo. Se emplearon modelos de regresión logística para evaluar las asociaciones entre el consumo frecuente de carne de reno o alce (más de una vez por semana) y la autodeclaración de mala salud física o bajo bienestar mental.

Resultados: Aunque el consumo de carne tradicional disminuyó ligeramente entre los Sámi de 75 años o más, se mantuvo significativamente por encima de la media nacional. Las mujeres y las personas de mayor edad informaron un consumo menor que los hombres y los participantes más jóvenes. El consumo frecuente de carne de reno o alce se asoció con menores probabilidades de bajo bienestar mental en todos los subgrupos, incluso tras ajustar por edad, sexo, nivel educativo e ingresos.

Conclusión: Estos resultados sugieren que la comida tradicional Sámi está asociada con un mejor bienestar mental, especialmente entre las personas Sámi mayores. No obstante, al tratarse de un estudio transversal, la asociación no puede interpretarse como causal. El vínculo subyacente podría estar relacionado con el significado cultural de los alimentos tradicionales. En este contexto, la comida también podría actuar como un indicador de fortaleza cultural, un factor que investigaciones previas han identificado como importante para la salud mental de los pueblos indígenas. Se necesitan más estudios para aclarar los mecanismos que explican estas asociaciones.

Introduktion: Traditionell mat är viktig för många urfolk, både för hälsan och för känslan av samhörighet. För samerna, Europas enda urfolk, har ren- och älgkött länge varit en central del av livet. Men kan den här maten också ha en koppling till hur människor mår? En ny studie med över 3 600 samiska deltagare i Sverige undersökte sambandet mellan traditionell mat och både fysisk och psykisk hälsa.

Vad gjorde forskarna?: Forskarna analyserade data från den stora folkhälsoenkäten SámiHET 2021. Deltagarna fick svara på frågor om sina matvanor, sin livssituation och hur de upplevde sin hälsa. Fokus låg särskilt på hur ofta de åt ren- eller älgkött, och hur de skattade sin fysiska och psykiska hälsa.

Vad visade resultaten?: Traditionell mat var fortfarande vanlig, särskilt bland män och yngre samer. Äldre personer, särskilt de över 75 år, åt något mindre traditionellt kött, men fortfarande betydligt mer än befolkningen i Sverige i stort. Det mest intressanta resultatet var att personer som åt ren- eller älgkött ofta, mer än en gång i veckan, rapporterade bättre psykiskt välbefinnande. Detta samband fanns kvar även efter att forskarna tagit hänsyn till ålder, kön, utbildning och inkomst.

Vad kan det bero på?: Studien kan inte säga om det är själva maten som gör att människor mår bättre, eftersom det inte går att avgöra orsak och verkan i en tvärsnittsstudie. Forskarna menar istället att sambandet lika gärna kan ha med kultur att göra. Traditionell mat kan stärka känslan av tillhörighet, kopplingen till det samiska samhället och kontakten med familj och traditioner. Tidigare forskning visar att kulturell identitet ofta är viktig för psykisk hälsa hos urfolk.

Vad betyder detta? Studien antyder att traditionell samisk mat kan spela en roll för psykiskt välbefinnande, särskilt bland äldre samer. Men det behövs mer forskning för att förstå mekanismerna bakom sambandet och om det verkligen är maten, kulturen eller något helt annat som påverkar hur samer i Sverige mår.

Studien undersöker sambandet mellan psykisk hälsa och förmågan att tala samiska bland samer i Sverige. Data kommer från den befolkningsbaserade enkätundersökningen Samisk HLV 2021, där 3 658 samer deltog. Endast cirka en femtedel (22,9 %) uppger att de kan tala samiska, med störst språkkunnighet i de äldsta och yngsta åldersgrupperna. Språkkunnighet är vanligare bland personer med lägre inkomst och utbildningsnivå.

Det centrala resultatet är att psykisk ohälsa är betydligt vanligare bland samer som inte kan tala samiska. Detta gäller flera dimensioner av psykiskt välbefinnande, inklusive:

• brist på psykiskt välbefinnande
• stress
• ängslan,
• oro och ångest
• depression
• psykisk påfrestning
• självmordstankar
• och självmordsförsök

Sambanden kvarstår även efter justering för kön, ålder, utbildning och inkomst, vilket tyder på att språkkunskap har en självständig och stark koppling till psykisk hälsa.

Kapitlet diskuterar möjliga förklaringar och pekar på att språket kan fungera som en kulturell skyddsfaktor, kopplad till identitet, social samhörighet och kontinuitet över generationer. Resultaten ligger i linje med internationell forskning som visar att urfolks språkkunnighet ofta hänger samman med bättre psykiskt välbefinnande.

Studien betonar behovet av fortsatta satsningar på språkrevitalisering samt utvecklingen av ett nationellt folkhälsopolitiskt program för samers hälsa. Den lyfter också att kunskapsläget om samers psykiska och fysiska hälsa i Sverige fortfarande är begränsat och att långsiktiga system för uppföljning saknas.

The study examines the relationship between mental health and the ability to speak Sámi among Sámi people in Sweden. The data come from the population-based survey Samisk HLV 2021, in which 3,658 Sámi participated. Only about one fifth (22.9%) report that they can speak a Sámi language, with the highest levels of language proficiency found in the oldest and youngest age groups. Language proficiency is more common among individuals with lower income and educational levels.

The central finding is that mental ill-health is significantly more common among Sámi who cannot speak a Sámi language. This applies to several dimensions of mental well-being, including:

• lack of mental well-being
• stress
• anxiety,
• worry, and fear
• depression
• psychological distress
• suicidal thoughts
• and suicide attempts

These associations remain even after adjusting for gender, age, education, and income, indicating that language proficiency has an independent and strong link to mental health.

The chapter discusses possible explanations and highlights that language may function as a cultural protective factor, connected to identity, social belonging, and continuity across generations. The results align with international research showing that Indigenous language proficiency is often associated with better mental well-being.

The study emphasizes the need for continued efforts in language revitalization as well as the development of a national public health program for Sámi health. It also stresses that the current knowledge base regarding the mental and physical health of Sámi people in Sweden remains limited, and that long-term systems for monitoring and follow-up are lacking.

This chapter provides an overview of the inter-relationship between food, culture, and health for Indigenous peoples. This includes understanding the deep significance of traditional food systems in promoting health and preserving cultural identity. There is a well identified impact of both the historical and ongoing impacts of colonisation, climate change, and discrimination on Indigenous foodways and health outcomes. Despite this Indigenous communities have displayed resilience to enable their communities to adapt to environmental changes and highlight the crucial role of Indigenous knowledge in sustainable food practices. It is important for nutrition professionals to promote culturally responsive health policies that recognize Indigenous peoples’ rights to self-determination and food sovereignty including the incorporation of Indigenous knowledge into health and environmental policies to address health disparities and promote well-being. The spiritual connection Indigenous peoples have to their lands and the importance of maintaining traditional food systems for cultural continuity needs to be recognised and encouraged. Overall, the recognition of Indigenous peoples’ rights to maintain their cultural identities and food sovereignty are important, including the need for policies that address the social and environmental determinants of health.

This chapter emphasizes a central theme: the health impacts of climate change are deeply rooted in Indigenous Peoples’ relationships with their lands. Location-specific environmental changes and biodiversity loss are causing significant proximal, intermediate, and long-term effects on Indigenous health and well-being.

Examples are presented of changes in aquatic, atmospheric, and terrestrial systems across diverse regions, as well as cryosphere changes in Arctic and subarctic areas. Overall, climate-related shifts — such as altered precipitation patterns, rising temperatures, and increased erosion — are disrupting relationships between living organisms and their environments. These disruptions threaten key plant and animal species that are vital to Indigenous food systems, medicines, and livelihoods.

Indigenous communities are also impacted by the spread of invasive species and the decline in health and productivity of agrobiodiverse crops. Both human activities and broader environmental changes are identified as major drivers of ecosystem and biodiversity loss.

There is broad recognition of the importance of integrating multiple knowledge systems, beyond Western science alone, in climate change research and response. Indigenous knowledge systems must play a central role, with Indigenous knowledge holders actively engaged in climate monitoring and adaptation efforts.

Responses to climate change and biodiversity loss should primarily occur at the community level, where solutions are best aligned with local values and principles. Strengthening Indigenous sovereignty, rights, and self-determination is essential in all climate-related initiatives, including those focused on food and water systems, health systems, and environmental monitoring.

Key features: 

• The Northern Sweden Health and Disease Study (NSHDS) was initiated in the mid-1980s. The NSHDS is a population-based prospective longitudinal cohort comprising >140 000 participants in the two northernmost regions in Sweden, Norrbotten and Västerbotten, with >240 000 blood samples and 1.5 million person-years of follow-up.
• The NSHDS includes three sub-cohorts: the Västerbotten Intervention Programme (VIP), the expanded Northern Sweden Monitoring of Trends and Determinants of Cardiovascular Disease (MONICA) Study, and the Mammography Screening Project (MSP). The VIP is both a community-based cardiometabolic intervention programme encouraging healthy lifestyle (targeting individuals 40, 50, and 60 years of age), and a corresponding research cohort. The MONICA is an observational study focusing on cardiovascular disease and its associated risk factors, recruiting individuals aged 25–74 years. The MSP recruited women attending mammography during 1995–2006. The NSHDS median participation age is 50 years (53% women).
• Most participants contribute data on health, lifestyle, anthropometric measures, blood pressure, blood lipids, and glucose tolerance, along with research blood samples that are fractionated, frozen within an hour of collection, and stored at –80°C. Linkage to registries, clinical cohorts, and biological tissue archives facilitates studies of well-characterized participants (often combined with intervention studies).
• Collaborations are encouraged. Additional information can be found at: info.brs@umu.se; https://www.umu.se/en/biobank

Background and purpose of study: The elderly care regime for Indigenous peoples differs between India and Sweden. In India, the family cares for the elderly, while the responsibility in Sweden lies with the authorities. Food insecurity is the main problem in India, while lack of culturally adapted food is a problem in Sweden. In both cases, little knowledge exists on the importance of traditional food in Indigenous elderly care. By examining the use and significance of traditional food in elderly care for the Mal Paharia people in India and the Sami in Sweden, we focus on the following questions: What is the significance of nutritious and culturally adequate food? How are the elderly care regimes for food constituted? How can these regimes be improved using participatory methods? What policy recommendations can be created based on our study?. Our study focuses on the health, organization and welfare aspects of aging from an Indigenous perspective.

Methods: A consistent perspective on this study is the decolonialized and liberating action research with Indigenous peoples (so-called PAR). The method is based on a triangulation and mixed-methods design and is made up of four different sub-studies: WP1 on Indigenous life stories about food; WP2 on quantitative surveys and nutrition index; WP3 on care regimes and WP4 on participatory implementation. The research groups in India and Sweden, which include both Indigenous and non-Indigenous people from each country, will collaborate through a consortium. Focus group interviews will be conducted both with the elderly (WP1) and with government representatives and recipients (WP3). The quantitative study (WP2) is based on already collected data material from more than 1000 elderly Sami in Sweden, the Sami Health on Equal Terms study and on data to be collected among 200 older Mal Paharia (two-stage clustering) in India. Interpreters will be offered for people who communicate best in their mother tongue. The implementation study (WP4) will be carried out with a bottom-up perspective, with a focus on food safety in India and food sovereignty in Sweden.

Discussion: Our study focuses on the health, organization and welfare aspects of aging from an Indigenous perspective. Older Indigenous peoples have knowledge about nutritious diets that are important to utilize, both from a care perspective, and from a longer-term self-sufficiency perspective, where their knowledge can give us keys to a more sustainable, culturally richer and biotope-wise more well-adapted future food system.

Introduction: The consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSB) is a significant public health issue linked to various diseases like diabetes, obesity, and hypertension. SSB include flavored beverages with added sugars, and their high consumption is prevalent worldwide. Notably, there is limited research on SSB consumption within Indigenous communities, including the Sámi, the only Indigenous group in the European Union. The aim of this study was to estimate the prevalence of SSB consumption and identify associated risk factors among the Sámi population in Sweden.

Methods: The research utilized data from the SámiHET survey. A total of 3,658 Sámi aged 18 to 84 responded to the survey, which included questions on health outcomes, lifestyle behaviours, and socioeconomic data. SSB consumption was assessed by frequency of intake, and sociodemographic, socioeconomic, and sociocultural factors were analyzed to identify associated risk factors. Prevalence ratios and their 95% confidence intervals were estimated, using sampling weights to enhance generalizability.

Results: The study found that 29.5% of participants reported consuming SSB at least twice a week. Men and younger individuals displayed higher consumption patterns. Statistically significant associations were also observed with lower educational levels and belonging to mountain reindeer herding communities. However, economic stress and income levels were not found to have a statistical association with SSB consumption.

Conclusions: The research highlights a substantial consumption of SSB among the Sámi, similar to national levels but lower than other Indigenous groups globally. Factors like gender, age, education, and specific sociocultural contexts (e.g., belonging to a reindeer herding community) were significantly associated with SSB consumption. Culturally adapted public health interventions targeting youth and men and increasing health literacy among the entire Sámi population are recommended to promote better health but also to prevent future chronic diseases.

Two recent UArctic reports analyze Arctic research trends based onfunding data and bibliometrics. As a key finding, they affirm the significanceof the United States as a major Arctic research nation. The US dominates in both total spending and the number of initiated projects,which is in line with previous reports compiled by UArctic. In addition,the US continues to lead Arctic research contributions in terms of publication numbers.The findings presented in the two reports are expected to drive furtherdiscussions and inspire new avenues for future analysis. Experts emphasize the value of ongoing data utilization to deepen our comprehension of Arctic research, recognizing the importance of documenting these insights for posterity.

This report aims to provide an update to the two studies published in 2016 and 2017 (Osipov et al 2016 & 2017) with the primary task of assessing the global funding landscape around Arctic-related research. While the previous reports were focusing on the periods 2006-2015 and 2007-2016 respectively, this report covers 2016 to 2022, using the funding data from the Dimensions[1] dataset, which includes information from more than 600 funders and 7 million awarded grants with funding totalling $2.4 trillion+ (in US Dollars).

The key findings of the updated report, based on the available data, highlight the following trends:  

·       The fields of Earth Sciences (10.3 percent) and Environmental Science (5.5 percent) are the two largest recipients of Arctic research funding. 

·       The US is the largest Arctic research nation in terms of total spending and number of projects started. It also has the most comprehensive coverage of funding sources in the dataset.  

·       Canada and Russia are the second and third largest nations in terms of number of projects started, followed by Norway and Sweden.

·       UArctic institutions are central actors in Arctic research globally. 

·       Researchers from Arctic Council Observer nations are financing a substantial amount of research on the Arctic. In particular, the UK and Japan finance a significant number of projects, followed by Germany and China with considerable numbers of Arctic-related research projects.

·       Funding from the European Union holds the position of the eighth-largest funder based on the number of projects awarded. The European Union is characterized by a few projects with large funding.

·       The analysis suggests that there is neither growth nor shrinkage in the relative volume of Arctic research funding over the period 2016–2022 in comparison with the growth of the general scientific community.

·       Private funders and foundations contribute little to Arctic research. Only one percent of the projects starting in 2016–2022 were funded privately. 

In general, the largest sources of external public funding for Arctic research come from the United States (US), Russia, Canada, and Norway, with the US being the biggest net contributor. Other kinds of funding, such as base budgets, are not described in this report. In addition, data on the public funding and funding amounts of Arctic research in Russia, Canada, and the Kingdom of Denmark are not always provided by the funders in project profiles, and net value is sometimes not disclosed by the funders themselves. 

This report specifically investigates projects initiated between 2016 and 2022, providing insights into the contemporary funding landscape of Arctic research. Understanding the geographical and institutional distribution of funding, as well as the specific areas of focus within this funding, holds significance for UArctic and Arctic Council officials. Such insights facilitate their ability to offer informed guidance to their respective members, aiding in the identification of strategic priorities.

Moreover, gaining insights into the entities funding Arctic research, and those not engaged in such funding, holds importance for UArctic and Arctic Council science officers. Armed with information about Arctic-focused endeavours they can engage with funding bodies, fostering dialogue aimed at enhancing support, and collaboration for such initiatives.

This paper outlines the methodological approaches to a multi-site Circumpolar case study exploring the impacts of COVID-19 on Indigenous and remote communities in 7 of 8 Arctic countries. Researchers involved with the project implemented a three-phase multi-site case study to assess the positive and negative societal outcomes associated with the COVID-19 pandemic in Arctic communities from 2020 to 2023. The goal of the multi-site case study was to identify community-driven models and evidence-based promising practices and recommendations that can help inform cohesive and coordinated public health responses and protocols related to future public health emergencies in the Arctic. Research sites included a minimum of 1 one community each from Canada (Nunavut,) United States of America (Alaska), Greenland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, Finland. The approaches used for our multi-site case study provide a comprehensive, evidence-based account of the complex health challenges facing Arctic communities, offering insights into the effectiveness of interventions, while also privileging Indigenous local knowledge and voices. The mixed method multi-site case study approach enriched the understanding of unique regional health disparities and strengths during the pandemic. These methodological approaches serve as a valuable resource for policymakers, researchers, and healthcare professionals, informing future strategies and interventions.