Introduction Deborah is a 65-year-old First Nations woman living in northern Ontario, and who has type-II diabetes. After leaving high school in grade 11 and eventually working a 35-year career as a secretary at an elementary school in a poor neighbourhood in Toronto while raising her three children, Deborah retired nine years ago and moved back to her home community, where she is an active member on the Council and is a regular volunteer. As a child, Deborah’s parents worked long hours in manual labour jobs on their reserve to provide for their five children; Deborah is the youngest of her family, and two of her siblings also have type-II diabetes. While working, Deborah earned slightly less than $30,000/year, and she has since lived off of her small pension and government assistance. Deborah’s income and lack of full education have contributed to her generally low socioeconomic status. This, partnered with her Aboriginal status, put Deborah at a significantly higher risk than the general Canadian population to develop type-II diabetes. This essay will examine how these social determinants have increased Deborah’s risk for type-II diabetes, and how Deborah’s situation fits within the context of overall Aboriginal health in Canada.
Type-II Diabetes Mellitus Type-II diabetes mellitus (also referred to as simply type-II diabetes or T2DM) is a chronic disease in which individuals are unable to produce adequate amounts of insulin from the pancreas, or who are unable to use any
Type 2 is characterized by the body’s inability to use insulin effectively because of a combination of resistance to insulin as well as an overall decrease production in insulin. There is a genetic predisposition to Type 2 diabetes, but there are several other factors that also put an individual at
Although the health of some Aboriginal peoples is gradually improving, it is generally still poorer than the health of non-Aboriginal peoples living in Ontario. The Aboriginal Peoples Survey indicates that the most commonly reported chronic health conditions for Aboriginal peoples in Ontario over 15 years of age and living off reserve are: arthritis or rheumatism, high blood pressure, asthma, stomach problems, diabetes, and heart problems. (Noelle Spotton. 2001, page. 20)
Diabetes is a growing health concern within Aboriginal communities across Canada, it is a health concern that is often an underlying condition secondary to many other health issues and often goes undiagnosed or untreated. Many individuals within these communities choose to leave their diabetes untreated until it becomes life threatening and becomes too late to treat or control. According to Health Canada (2013), Aboriginal peoples who are living on reserves have a rate of diabetes that is three to five times higher as compared to Non-Aboriginal Canadians (Para. 1). The growing rate of diabetes is especially concerning amongst the Inuit communities, and is a growing concern; the rate of diabetes within this community is expected to steadily increase over the coming years from contributing factors such as lack of activity, poor nutrition and obesity (Health Canada, 2013). For these reasons alone it is important to raise awareness and educate these communities about diabetes and healthy lifestyle so that positive steps can be taken in order to maintain healthy living. Aboriginal peoples living in Canada have higher rates of diabetes as compared to non Aboriginal Canadians, and of the two types of diabetes, type 1 and type 2, the latter is more prevalent in First Nations communities (Brooks, Darroch, & Giles, 2013). With diabetes uncontrolled, an individual can come across many health problems such as poor circulation, foot ulcers, and sometimes even amputation (American
The prevalence of diabetes is increasing in Canada, and is growing health concern. This increase is especially apparent in Canadian Aboriginal population where the estimated prevalence of diabetes is three to five times higher than in the general Canadian population. Because of the risk of several health complications such as coronary heart diseases, neuropathy, eye damage, kidney failure, and peripheral arterial diseases, diabetes is a one of the leading causes of mortality and morbidity. Developing health complications increases when diabetes is undiagnosed and represents unseen, but important burden with significant long-term impact on the people’s health status. First Nations individuals have more diabetes risk factors and suffer more diabetes-related health complications than non-Aboriginals. Therefore, accurate data on diabetes prevalence are essential for government, health care and research organizations.
Type II diabetes is a chronic medical condition that affects the way the body uses glucose. With diabetes, the body can resist the effect of insulin or fails to produce enough insulin to preserve a glucose level within normal limits. Type II diabetes is becoming much more common than before and the occurrence is growing. Approximately 23.5 million people in the United States are living with type II diabetes (Fesselle, 2010).
Health has become a growing issue among individuals around the world due to a variety of social determinants such as diet, lifestyles, environment, and level of education that impact one’s health. These factors determine whether an individual receives health problems or not – such as diabetes. Among indigenous individuals, diabetes is an issue that is prevalent because of dietary changes in Canada, different lifestyles compared to indigenous ancestors, and whether one lives on or off reserves. Indigenous individuals like First Nations, Metis or Inuit people overtime have adapted to lifestyle changes, which in the end has impacted their health. As the result of being more sedentary in the West, indigenous individuals have developed poor eating habits along with the lack of exercise that comes with living in the West. The environment is a key influencer in the development of diabetes, which will be discussed in this paper by explaining how society and the physical environment are interconnected with diabetes. This research paper will discuss the reasons for an increased prevalence of diabetes among indigenous peoples in Canada compared to individuals of non-Aboriginal status. Furthermore, the prevalence of diabetes among indigenous individuals in Canada results from factors like poor diet, lack of exercise, colonization, lack of access to medical care, and whether one lives on or off the reserves.
Despite enjoying excellent health and receiving comprehensive and universal healthcare access, Canada has seen continuing healthcare inequality especially among those people living at or below the poverty level and those who are members of the Aboriginal Peoples. The greatest impact of this disparity is evidenced through earlier mortality rates and greater incidences of injury and illness. Nowhere in Canada is this more true than among the Aboriginal Peoples, who, for example, have the highest rate or and risk for Type 2 Diabetes. This risk costs Canada an additional 18 billion dollars CAD every year (Strategic Initiatives and Innovations Directorate, 2011).
Canada’s Aboriginal people have been experiencing adverse health outcomes that have been resonating across generations. As a result, Aboriginals are disproportionately suffering more from disabilities, diseases and high rates of mortality than other Canadians. The high rates of HIV, depression and chronic diseases among Aboriginals have been linked to experiences of poverty, unemployment, poor living conditions, and the loss of community ties. Although Aboriginal communities are suffering from a wide variety of health issue, Canadian society has been unable to find adequate solutions. My understanding is that as a society we lack the ability to find suitable solutions because we do not understand the correlations between various socio-economic factors and poor health.
Before we analyse the data of the health indicators and data in Aboriginal communities, we must recognise the sheer diversity of the Aboriginal peoples in Canada - who are so dispersed across the nation. This this severely limits our interpretation of data on Aboriginal communities as, there is little data on Aboriginal people who do not live on Aboriginal reservations in Canada (Cardwell and Wilson: 2005). Furthermore, the data that is often used in empirical studies of indigenous communities often condense complex data – making it exceptionally difficult to paint an accurate picture of disparities in the Aboriginal population of Canada. Health disparities are the indicators of a disproportionate burden of disease on a particular population. Whereas, health inequities point to the underlying causes of the disparities - which are related to social, economic, cultural, and political inequities (Adelson, 2005: 45). For example, the urban non-Aboriginal population in Canada has a higher level of education and income than the aboriginal population (Cardwell and Wilson: 2012). This is inherently important for improving the health of Aboriginal communities. As, Canada’s indigenous population are often recognised as some of the most disadvantaged and impoverished people in Canada, particularly when compared to the non-Aboriginal people.
As Perry Bellegarde, Chief of the Assembly of First Nations said, Trudeau’s claims finally allow for an optimistic view of the general aboriginal community’s future (Mas, 2015). Indeed, it is promising to witness the government taking action towards addressing issues such as lack of funding in aboriginal education, as it is these issues along with indecent access to fresh produce or to proper entertainment, which most often leads to both physical and mental health problems in First Nation communities. Furthermore, although most of the Canadian population is aware of the health issues faced by aboriginal communities, what seems to be lesser known is that the cause of those issues go far beyond maladaptive genes. Consequently, measures addressing the socioeconomic risk factors, such as access to adequate health services, must be taken as soon as possible.
Type II diabetes is a mixture of both genetic and environmental factors. It is a metabolic disorder that affects the way the body processes blood sugar due to the fact that the body cannot produce enough insulin. The victim often feels fatigued and thirsty that leads to frequent urination. Obesity is believed to be the primary cause of Type II diabetes to those who are genetically predisposed. Based on the American Diabetes Association, non-Hispanic blacks are second in being diagnosed with diabetes with 13.2%. Type II diabetes can come with many effects
First Nations people are often of a lower socioeconomic status that then average Canadian citizen. Poverty increases the risk of developing chronic disease and premature death. Increased risk of chronic disease is a result of material deprivation, inadequate housing, poor nutrition, physical and emotional stress, and poor access to health care services (HCC, 2012; Reading, 2009). The HCC (2012) reported that First Nations individuals are more likely than other Canadian citizens to live with a
The other more common type of Diabetes is Type II, affecting more than 13.3 million people in the United States. Type II Diabetes is a metabolic disorder resulting from the body's inability to make enough or properly use insulin. Sometimes Type II can be due to prolonged obesity when a rise in the level of blood sugar inactivates tissue components that are targets for insulin, consequentially killing off the cells needed to transport the sugar. Type II diabetes is most prevalent in adults over forty, but most people do not recognize the disease until they develop one of it's life threatening complications. Type II has the same symptoms as
When reviewing the study’s literature review, it revealed that the authors provided great insight into the various quantitative values related to pregnant First Nations women and diabetes. Readers were able to gain insight into ideas such as fertility/birth rates as well as the substantial rate of those with diabetes among Albertan First Nations (Mayan, Oster, & Toth, 2014. p. 1469). This was a strength of the literature review as it is important to allow readers to develop a better understanding of what the particular issue the study is focusing on and why this issue exists, among other things (Fawcett, 2013). Additionally, as the study focused on the qualitative facts related to pregnant First Nations women and diabetes, the authors attempted to bring other variations of data with similar results
There are two types of diabetes mellitus: Type 1 diabetes (T1D) and Type 2 diabetes (T2D). T1D is characterized by the inability to produce adequate insulin. T2D, which is more prevalent, is characterized by insulin resistance primarily due to fatty diets and sedentary lifestyles72,73. Sufficient insulin production and/or supplementation is vital to maintaining a healthy female