Prevalence of heart attack and stroke and associated risk factors among Inuit in Canada: A comparison with the general Canadian population.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: It is generally believed that cardiovascular disease (CVD) is rare in the Inuit population because of their traditional marine-based diet, but the evidence is inconsistent. OBJECTIVE: To describe the cardiovascular health profile of Canadian Inuit, including disease prevalence, risk factors, country food consumption, and contaminant exposure, and compare to that of the general Canadian population. METHODS: Cardiovascular outcomes and risk factors were obtained for 2070 Inuit adults aged 20-79 years from the Inuit Health Survey (IHS, 2007-2008) and for 3464 general Canadian adults aged 20-79 years from the Canadian Health Measures Survey, Cycle 1 (CHMS, 2007-2009) and Cycle 3 (2012-2013). Sex- and age-specific (20-39, 40-59, 60-79) estimates are reported. To compare results between the IHS and CHMS, age-standardized estimates were calculated for males and females, using the CHMS as the reference population. RESULTS: Inuit had higher prevalence of heart attack (3.1% vs. 1.8% females), stroke (2.1% vs. 0.8% males and 2.2% vs. 1.0% females), diabetes (14.6% vs. 9.0% elderly females), obesity (35.8% vs. 24.2% females), and hypertension (12.2% vs. 2.5% young males and 7.5% vs. 2.5% young females). However, Inuit had better blood lipid profile (hyperlipidemia 29.0% vs. 46.5% males and 28.4% vs. 35.2% females). Metals and persistent organic pollutant exposures were higher among the Inuit compared with general Canadians. CONCLUSION: Inuit and the general Canadian population differ in cardiovascular health profiles. Further research is needed to characterize the health transition among Inuit, especially among the youth and female.