Chokeberry reduces inflammation in human preadipocytes.

Chokeberry, Aronia melanocarpa, is an indigenous fruit from North America used as food and to prevent chronic disease by Indigenous Peoples. The objective of this study was to test anti-inflammatory effects of anthocyanin on palmitic acid (PA)-induced IL-6 gene expression, IL-6 DNA methylation, and histone (H3) acetylation. Additionally, we examined effects of anthocyanins Cyanidin-3-O-galactoside (C3Gal) and Cyanidin-3-glucoside (C3G) on IL-6 gene expression. Human primary pre-adipocytes were treated with chokeberry juice extract (CBE), C3Gal or C3G in the presence or absence of PA or lipopolysaccharide (LPS). CBE inhibited LPS- and PA-induced IL-6 mRNA expression (p < 0.0001), while C3G and C3Gal had smaller effects. Human IL-6 promoter DNA methylation was increased (p = 0.0256) in CBE treated cells compared to control. Histone H3 acetylations were not affected by CBE or PA treatment. These data indicate that CBE epigenetically reduced PA-induced inflammation by regulating IL-6 DNA methylation without affecting histone modifications in human preadipocyte cells.

A Strategy To Support Perinatal Mental Health By Collaborating With Tribal Communities In Montana.

Among Indigenous women and birthing people, reported rates of perinatal mental health complications are consistently higher than in the general US population. However, perinatal mental health programs and interventions tend to focus on the general population and do not account for the unique experiences and worldviews of Indigenous Peoples. We highlight a collaborative strategy employed by a Montana nonprofit to engage Tribal communities in completing a statewide online resource guide designed to help pregnant and parenting families find resources, including mental health and substance use treatment options, within and beyond their local communities. Based on this strategy, cultural resources relevant to Tribal communities were added to the resource guide. Agencies committed to addressing perinatal mental health disparities among Indigenous populations should consider similar strategies to share power with Tribal communities and collaboratively create culturally congruent programs and interventions.

Patient-planetary health co-benefit prescribing in a circumpolar health region: a qualitative study of physician voices from the Northwest Territories, Canada.

BACKGROUND: Despite climate change being described as a code red for humanity, health systems have been particularly slow in both climate mitigation and adaptation responses. The effects of climate change on health and health systems will not be felt equally, with underserved and marginalised communities disproportionately impacted. The circumpolar region is warming at 3-4 times the global rate, amplifying already existing socioeconomic barriers and health inequities, with particular amplified effects for the substantial Indigenous population in the area. OBJECTIVES AND SETTING: We therefore sought to explore perspectives of physicians around patient-planetary health (P-PH) co-benefit prescribing in a circumpolar region in the Northwest Territories (NWT), Canada, known to be one of the ground zero levels for climate change. METHODS: Thirteen semi-structured physician interviews were carried out in the NWT region between May 2022 and March 2023 using purposive sampling. Interviews were transcribed verbatim and reflexive thematic analysis was carried out to identify key themes. RESULTS: There were three main themes identified including (1) current healthcare system does not support planetary health, (2) supporting patient-planetary health is currently difficult for clinicians and (3) considering change in the NWT to support patient-planetary health. Participants noted key opportunities to move planetary health forward, with the NWT having the potential to be an innovative model for planetary health-informed change for other health systems. CONCLUSION: The NWT health system has unique features due to its rural and remote nature and smaller population base. Despite this, our study identified some key opportunities for advancing P-PH co-benefit efforts. The identified opportunities may be considered in future intervention, organisational change and policy-making efforts with potential relevance in other settings.

Biodiversity and human health: A scoping review and examples of underrepresented linkages.

Mounting evidence supports the connections between exposure to environmental typologies(such as green and blue spaces)and human health. However, the mechanistic links that connect biodiversity (the variety of life) and human health, and the extent of supporting evidence remain less clear. Here, we undertook a scoping review to map the links between biodiversity and human health and summarise the levels of associated evidence using an established weight of evidence framework. Distinct from other reviews, we provide additional context regarding the environment-microbiome-health axis, evaluate the environmental buffering pathway (e.g., biodiversity impacts on air pollution), and provide examples of three under- or minimally-represented linkages. The examples are (1) biodiversity and Indigenous Peoples' health, (2) biodiversity and urban social equity, and (3) biodiversity and COVID-19. We observed a moderate level of evidence to support the environmental microbiota-human health pathway and a moderate-high level of evidence to support broader nature pathways (e.g., greenspace) to various health outcomes, from stress reduction to enhanced wellbeing and improved social cohesion. However, studies of broader nature pathways did not typically include specific biodiversity metrics, indicating clear research gaps. Further research is required to understand the connections and causative pathways between biodiversity (e.g., using metrics such as taxonomy, diversity/richness, structure, and function) and health outcomes. There are well-established frameworks to assess the effects of broad classifications of nature on human health. These can assist future research in linking biodiversity metrics to human health outcomes. Our examples of underrepresented linkages highlight the roles of biodiversity and its loss on urban lived experiences, infectious diseases, and Indigenous Peoples' sovereignty and livelihoods. More research and awareness of these socioecological interconnections are needed.

Indigenous Peoples: Traditional knowledges, climate change, and health.

Indigenous Peoples around the globe make up approximately six percent of the global population, yet they sustainably care for around eighty percent of the world's remaining biodiversity. Despite continued political, economic, and racial marginalization, as well as some of the worst health inequities on the planet, Indigenous Peoples have worked hard to maintain their cultures and languages against all odds. Indigenous Peoples' close connections to land, water, and ecosystems, however, have placed them at increasing vulnerability from the effects of climate change. With this, the health risks from climate change have unique considerations within Indigenous Nations for both mitigation and adaptation responses that are largely unappreciated. This Indigenous narrative review will synthesis the current climate and health landscape of Indigenous Peoples at a global, high-level scale, including relevant international mechanisms and considerations for Indigenous Peoples' health. This Indigenous narrative review will also explore and reflect on the strengths of Indigenous traditional knowledges as it pertains to climate change and health.

Elements of Successful Food Sovereignty Interventions within Indigenous Communities in the United States and Canada: a Systematic Review.

Despite inherent resiliency and strengths, Indigenous Peoples in the United States and Canada have been impacted by colonialism, which has led to a loss of land, culture, and identity. Loss of land in particular has had substantial impacts on Indigenous food system practices. Indigenous food sovereignty (IFS) has been determined to be a mechanism for Indigenous communities to build their capacity to address food insecurity. A systematic review methodology was therefore engaged to gather and analyze the currently published literature to date to identify common elements of successful IFS interventions within Indigenous communities in the United States and Canada. We carried out a systematic search of the following electronic databases: Academic Search Premier, Agricola, PubMed, CINAHL Complete, Indigenous Studies Portal, the Native Health Database, SocIndex, PsycInfo, and Google Scholar. The Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool was used to apply a methodologic quality score to the included articles. We used a 2-stage process for article selection with 2 independent reviewers screening the titles and abstracts of articles identified. Relevant databases were initially searched up to June 2022 with an updated search occurring in January 2023. Content analysis was carried out on the included articles using qualitative analysis software. Twenty articles met the inclusion criteria of the review. Four main categories of successful elements within IFS interventions were identified, including 1) transmission of knowledge and skills within the community through workshops, 2) cultural connectedness through cultivation practices, 3) preparation and consumption of traditional foods through community programs, and 4) community-based partnerships and collaborations. An IFS approach has led to the development of several intervention strategies within Indigenous communities, which have been highlighted in this review. The successful elements identified in this review may serve to support future food sovereignty-related programmatic and intervention development within Indigenous communities. PROSPERO (number: CRD42022342100).

Batwa Indigenous Peoples forced eviction for "Conservation": A qualitative examination on community impacts.

In 1991, the Ugandan government formally established National Parks within the ancestral homelands of the Batwa Peoples. No consultation was carried out with local Batwa communities, and they were consequently forcibly evicted from their Forest home. With this, we sought to better understand the impacts of forced Land eviction through the lens of solastalgia. Nineteen semi-structured interviews were carried out with adult Batwa Peoples of varying age and gender in Uganda from August to November 2022. Interviews were transcribed verbatim, and thematic analysis was carried out on the interview transcripts to identify themes from the initial codes. Four overarching themes were identified, including: 1) Our love and connection with the Forest; 2) What was left in the Forest when we were evicted; 3) What eviction from the Forest did to us as Batwa Peoples; and 4) Batwa People's Landback and returning to the Forest ('Indigenous Lands back into Indigenous hands'). As movement towards the global "30 by 30" conservation agenda occurs, we urge researchers, policy makers, and leaders to listen to the voices of Indigenous Peoples like the Batwa with a key focus on Landback and movement towards a clearer understanding and appreciation of the impacts of Western conservation agendas on Indigenous Peoples globally.

Physicians' views of patient-planetary health co-benefit prescribing: a mixed methods systematic review.

Health professionals are increasingly called to become partners in planetary health. Using patient-planetary health (P-PH) co-benefit prescribing framing, we did a mixed methods systematic review to identify barriers and facilitators to adopting P-PH co-benefit prescribing by physicians and mapped these onto the Capability, Opportunity, Motivation, and Behaviour (COM-B) model and Theoretical Domains Framework (TDF). We searched electronic databases from inception until October, 2022, and did a content analysis of the included articles (n=12). Relevant categories were matched to items in the COM-B model and TDF. Nine barriers and eight facilitators were identified. Barriers included an absence of, or little, knowledge of how to change practice and time to implement change; facilitators included having policy statements and guidelines from respected associations. More diverse study designs that include health professionals, patients, and health-care system stakeholders are needed to ensure a more holistic understanding of the individual, system, and policy levers involved in implementing clinical work informed by planetary health.

Conceptualizing Indigenous strengths-based health and wellness research using group concept mapping.

BACKGROUND: In recent years public health research has shifted to more strengths or asset-based approaches to health research but there is little understanding of what this concept means to Indigenous researchers. Therefore our purpose was to define an Indigenous strengths-based approach to health and well-being research. METHODS: Using Group Concept Mapping, Indigenous health researchers (N = 27) participated in three-phases. Phase 1: Participants provided 218 unique responses to the focus prompt "Indigenous Strengths-Based Health and Wellness Research…" Redundancies and irrelevant statements were removed using content analysis, resulting in a final set of 94 statements. Phase 2: Participants sorted statements into groupings and named these groupings. Participants rated each statement based on importance using a 4-point scale. Hierarchical cluster analysis was used to create clusters based on how statements were grouped by participants. Phase 3: Two virtual meetings were held to share and invite researchers to collaboratively interpret results. RESULTS: A six-cluster map representing the meaning of Indigenous strengths-based health and wellness research was created. Results of mean rating analysis showed all six clusters were rated on average as moderately important. CONCLUSIONS: The definition of Indigenous strengths-based health research, created through collaboration with leading AI/AN health researchers, centers Indigenous knowledges and cultures while shifting the research narrative from one of illness to one of flourishing and relationality. This framework offers actionable steps to researchers, public health practitioners, funders, and institutions to promote relational, strengths-based research that has the potential to promote Indigenous health and wellness at individual, family, community, and population levels.

Honoring Indigenous Sacred Places and Spirit in Environmental Health.

Indigenous Peoples and their deep knowledges offer a fundamentally important way of seeing the world and the environment. Through relationships to distinct ancestral homelands, Indigenous Peoples have developed unique ways of surviving, adapting, connecting, and relating to their respective environments. Indigenous Sacred Places themselves are connections to ancestors, to all beings on the planet, and to different planes of existence. Sacred Places serve an important environmental role in many Indigenous Nations around the globe. Yet, Indigenous Sacred Places, and in particular understandings of spirit that connect Sacred Places, have been historically and contemporarily marginalized and excluded from environmental health academic discourse and spaces. This despite concrete calls for the amplification of Indigenous traditional knowledges-that of which does not separate spirit from knowledge, or spirit from action-they are intertwined. With this, we sought to amplify in this Perspective, understandings and connectivity between Sacred Places, spirit, and environmental health through the stories from Indigenous Elders, processes of ceremony, and personal synthesis.

Ethical principles of traditional Indigenous medicine to guide western psychedelic research and practice.

The resurgence of Western psychedelic research and practice has led to increasing concerns from many Indigenous Nations regarding cultural appropriation, lack of recognition of the sacred cultural positioning of these medicines, exclusionary practices in research and praxis, and patenting of traditional medicines. Indigenous voices and leadership have been notably absent from the Western psychedelic field currently widely represented by Westerners. An Indigenous-led globally represented group of practitioners, activists, scholars, lawyers, and human rights defenders came together with the purpose of formulating a set of ethical guidelines concerning traditional Indigenous medicines current use in Western psychedelic research and practice. A global Indigenous consensus process of knowledge-gathering was engaged which identified eight interconnected ethical principles, including: Reverence, Respect, Responsibility, Relevance, Regulation, Reparation, Restoration, and Reconciliation. A summary of the work is presented here with suggested ethical actions for moving forward within Western psychedelic research and practice spaces.

Towards an educational praxis for planetary health: a call for transformative, inclusive, and integrative approaches for learning and relearning in the Anthropocene.

Fuelled by the intersecting challenges of climate change, biodiversity loss, pollution, and profound social, economic, and environmental injustices, calls for new ways to work together for a healthy, just, and sustainable future are burgeoning. Consequently, there is a growing imperative and mandate across the higher education space for transformative, inclusive, integrative-and sometimes disruptive-approaches to learning that strengthen our capacity to work towards the goals and imperatives of planetary health. This educational transformation requires attention to pathways of societal, policy, and system change, prioritising different voices and perspectives across jurisdictions, cultures, and learning contexts. This Viewpoint seeks to explore the developing areas of education for planetary health, while additionally reflecting on a praxis for education in the Anthropocene that is rooted within the confluence of diverse knowledges and practice legacies that have paved the way to learning and relearning for planetary health.