title: Investigating the effects of arctic dietary intake on lung health.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Preservation of lung health requires understanding the modifiable risk factors of airflow limitation. This study investigates the association between diet and lung function in a population of Greenland Inuit residing in the Arctic (Greenland) or Western Europe (Denmark).
  
  
  METHODS
  Two unselected Inuit populations were recruited, one living in Greenland (Urban (Nuuk) n=358; Rural (Uummannaq) n=207) and the other in Denmark (n=539). Lung function was measured using spirometry and diet by a food frequency questionnaire. Factors associated with airflow limitation were assessed using multiple linear regression models.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The dietary composition differed significantly in the two regions, with higher whale, seal and wild meat intake and lower fruit and vegetable intake in the Arctic regions compared with Denmark. Consumption of vegetables (P=0.004) and whale and/or seal (P<0.0001) was significantly and positively associated with FEV1, as well as with FVC (vegetables: P=0.001, whale and/or seal: P=0.002). Regular fruit intake was included in the statistical models; however, it did not reach statistical significance (FEV1: P=0.053; FVC: P=0.055).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  High dietary intake of vegetables as well as intake of arctic marine mammals had independent positive associations with lung function in this cohort of Greenlandic Inuit. These findings suggest an additive role of dietary intake of antioxidants and unsaturated fatty acids in lung health, which warrants prospective evaluation.
authors.affiliation: Priority Research Centre for Asthma and Respiratory Diseases, Hunter Medical Research Institute, The University of Newcastle, New Lambton Heights, New Lambton, New South Wales, Australia.|Department of Respiratory and Sleep Medicine, John Hunter Hospital, New Lambton, New South Wales, Australia.
authors.forename: K J
authors.initials: KJ
authors.lastname: Baines
authors.affiliation: Respiratory Research Unit, Bispebjerg University Hospital, Copenhagen, Denmark.
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Backer
authors.affiliation: Priority Research Centre for Asthma and Respiratory Diseases, Hunter Medical Research Institute, The University of Newcastle, New Lambton Heights, New Lambton, New South Wales, Australia.|Department of Respiratory and Sleep Medicine, John Hunter Hospital, New Lambton, New South Wales, Australia.
authors.forename: P G
authors.initials: PG
authors.lastname: Gibson
authors.affiliation: Priority Research Centre for Asthma and Respiratory Diseases, Hunter Medical Research Institute, The University of Newcastle, New Lambton Heights, New Lambton, New South Wales, Australia.|Department of Respiratory and Sleep Medicine, John Hunter Hospital, New Lambton, New South Wales, Australia.
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Powell
authors.affiliation: Respiratory Research Unit, Bispebjerg University Hospital, Copenhagen, Denmark.
authors.forename: C M
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Porsbjerg
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000403:Airway Resistance; D000818:Animals; D000975:Antioxidants / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D010872:Caniformia; D003718:Denmark; D004032:Diet; D005231:Fatty Acids, Unsaturated / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D005247:Feeding Behavior; D005260:Female; D006116:Greenland; D006801:Humans; D004930:Inuit; D008168:Lung / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology; D008171:Lung Diseases / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D008297:Male; D008460:Meat; D008875:Middle Aged; D013147:Spirometry; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014675:Vegetables; D014907:Whales
chemical_list: D000975:Antioxidants; D005231:Fatty Acids, Unsaturated