title: Elevated contaminants contrasted with potential benefits of ω-3 fatty acids in wild food consumers of two remote first nations communities in northern Ontario, Canada.
abstract: Indigenous communities in Boreal environments rely on locally-harvested wild foods for sustenance. These foods provide many nutritional benefits including higher levels of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs; such as ω-3) than what is commonly found in store-bought foods. However, wild foods can be a route of exposure to dietary mercury and persistent organic pollutants (POPs) such as polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). Here, we show a strong association between the frequency of wild food consumption in adults (N=72) from two remote First Nations communities of Northern Ontario and environmental contaminants in blood (POPs) and hair (mercury). We observed that POPs and mercury were on average 3.5 times higher among those consuming wild foods more often, with many frequent wild food consumers exceeding Canadian and international health guidelines for PCB and mercury exposures. Contaminants in locally-harvested fish and game from these communities were sufficiently high that many participants exceeded the monthly consumption limits for methylmercury and PCBs. Those consuming more wild foods also had higher proportions of potentially beneficial ω-3 fatty acids including eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA). These results show that the benefits of traditional dietary choices in Boreal regions of Canada must be weighed against the inherent risks of contaminant exposure from these foods.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, University of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.
authors.forename: Timothy A
authors.initials: TA
authors.lastname: Seabert
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, University of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.
authors.forename: Shinjini
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Pal
authors.affiliation: Indigenous Health Research Group, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.
authors.forename: Bernard M
authors.initials: BM
authors.lastname: Pinet
authors.affiliation: Indigenous Health Research Group, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.
authors.forename: Francois
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Haman
authors.affiliation: Indigenous Health Research Group, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.
authors.forename: Michael A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Robidoux
authors.affiliation: Behavioural and Metabolic Research Unit, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.
authors.forename: Pascal
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Imbeault
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, University of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.
authors.forename: Eva M
authors.initials: EM
authors.lastname: Krümmel
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, University of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.
authors.forename: Linda E
authors.initials: LE
authors.lastname: Kimpe
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, University of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.
authors.forename: Jules M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Blais
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000818:Animals; D000835:Animals, Wild; D004281:Docosahexaenoic Acids / Q000378:metabolism*; D004372:Ducks; D015118:Eicosapentaenoic Acid / Q000378:metabolism*; D004785:Environmental Pollutants; D005260:Female; D005399:Fishes; D005777:Geese; D006197:Hair / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D007198:Indians, North American; D008297:Male; D008452:Maximum Allowable Concentration; D008460:Meat / Q000032:analysis*; D008767:Methylmercury Compounds; D008875:Middle Aged; D009864:Ontario; D010743:Phospholipids / Q000097:blood; D011078:Polychlorinated Biphenyls; D011817:Rabbits; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012377:Rodentia; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D004785:Environmental Pollutants; D008767:Methylmercury Compounds; D010743:Phospholipids; D004281:Docosahexaenoic Acids; D015118:Eicosapentaenoic Acid; D011078:Polychlorinated Biphenyls