Dietary Adequacy among Rural Yup’ik Women in Western Alaska

Abstract

Objectives: To assess (1) energy and nutrient intake; (2) dietary adequacy; (3) traditional and nontraditional foods consumed; and (4) main foods contributing to energy and selected nutrient intake among Yup’ik women in Western Alaska.

Methods: Up to 3 24-hour dietary recalls were collected to assess the dietary intake. Dietary adequacy was determined by comparing women's daily nutrient intakes to corresponding dietary reference intakes (DRIs).

Results: Mean daily energy intake for the women was 2172 kcal, exceeding the DRI for energy. The majority of women (90–100%) fell below the recommendations for dietary fiber, calcium, and vitamins D and E. More than 50% of women fell below the recommendations for vitamin A, and more than one third were below the DRI for zinc and vitamins C and B₆. Juices/pop (including Tang, Kool-Aid, soda/pop, fruit juice, and energy drink), coffee, and traditional fish were the most frequently reported food items. Sweetened beverages and pop were the main contributors to energy, carbohydrate, and sugar intake. Traditional foods provided 34% of protein, 27% of iron, 23% of vitamin A, and 21% of zinc.

Conclusions: Among Yup’ik women, juices/pop were the most frequently consumed foods contributing to the high energy intake. However, traditional food still contributes substantially to certain nutrients. These data contribute to an understanding of dietary adequacy in this population and will aid in the development of a nutritional intervention program.

Key words:

• 24-hour dietary recall
• dietary adequacy
• Yup’ik women
• Alaska Native

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

We acknowledge the assistance of Jennifer Johnson, as well as the Yukon-Kuskokwim Health Corporation and the Norton Sound Health Corporation, and all of the people who so generously gave of their time and knowledge in each community.

This study was conducted according to the guidelines laid down in the Declaration of Helsinki and all procedures involving human subjects/patients were approved by the Alaska Area Institutional Review Board, the Yukon Kuskokwim Health Corporation, the Norton Sound Health Corporation, and the Office of Human Research Ethics at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The project was presented to the tribal councils and a written resolution of willingness to participate was granted by each community.

FUNDING

This project was supported by the National Research Initiative Grant 2007-55215-17923 from the USDA Cooperative State Research, Education and Extension Service. The USDA Cooperative State Research, Education and Extension Service had no role in the design, analysis, or writing of this article.

AUTHOR CONTRIBUTIONS

The author's responsibilities were as follows: S.D., F.G., and F.K. drafted the article; S.S. designed the study and provided essential data and finalized the article; and all authors read and approved the final artice.