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Major trends
in Northern community well-being |
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"It is fairly easy to demonstrate
the ill fate of many peripheral localities in the Northern area"
(Aarsaether & Baerenholdt, 1998). Indeed, even a brief look
at health status of inhabitants, unemployment rate, suicides, and
the crime rate, of many northern communities, can make one consider
overall well-being of northern peripheral communities, as lower
in comparison to the more central regions of the countries those
communities belong to. Differences are also observed between the
well-being of urban and rural northern communities, and in the well-being
of indigenous and non-indigenous communities. There also can be
found, both ethnic and occupational differences in the well-being
of the residents in the same community, or between various social
groups within a community. |
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Numerous studies alarmingly report:
"The health status of American Indians and Alaska Natives
is not equal to the U.S. general population. Poor nutrition,
coupled with unsafe water supplies and inadequate waste disposal
facilities, has resulted in a greater incidence of illness in
the Indian population" (Department of Health and Human
Services, report Health People 2000).
"Unemployment rate in the communities of Lapland (Northern
Finland) in the mid 90s was about 25 per cent whereas the average
employment rate in Finland was about 17 per cent" (Suopajarvi,
1998).
"Illness rate among children in the towns of Murmansk
region (North-Western Russia) in 1997-1998 was 42% higher than
Russian average" (Report from Murmansk Regional Committee
on Environment Protection, 1998).
Young people living in small fishing villages of the North Atlantic
tell:
Village of Isafiordur, Iceland: "The main occupation here
is the fish industry, but it has been in a difficult position
the last few years. The quota has been sold away, factories
have been closed down and people have lost their work."
Village of Chisasibi, Canada: "I like living in this community
because it's fun. But there's just one thing, and that's alcohol
and drugs. I don't like those things. And we don't have any
privacy at night. Because those who are drunk always knock on
everybody's doors".
Village of Teriberka, Russia: "Today almost all the enterprises
are stopped and this leads to increase in unemployment. The
young generation has nothing to do in their spare time. Because
of boredom, some drink, some smoke or sniff" (Northern
Future - Young Voices. UNESCO MOST CCPP, Project Report, 2000).
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Despite certain common traits like
high unemployment and increased numbers of: persons in poverty,
individuals with low education, children in households receiving
public assistance income, and persons with low health status, the
patterns differ throughout the North. |
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It is fair to say that living standards
are especially low in the Russian North. For example, in the Murmansk
region, (one of the most industrialized, urbanized and relatively
well-off regions of the Russian North), according to official statistics,
21 percent of the population had incomes below the national subsistence
minimum (poverty line) in 1997. Local research (see Riabova, 1998;
Granberg & Riabova, 1998) has given even higher values doubling
this figure by taking the regional consumption basket and unfavorable
regional price changes into consideration (Granberg & Riabova,
1998). Research on the food situation in the Murmansk region has
shown that diurnal caloric values of nutrition fell from 2445 k/cal
in 1990 to 2060 k/cal in 1995, (which is much below the official
estimates of daily need). Consumption of milk, eggs and fish products
fell by about one half from 1988 to 1996. Only the consumption of
bread, potato and vegetable oil remained stable (Granberg, Maretskiy
and Riabova, 2000). |
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In a recent book on the Russian North
by P. Zaidfudim and Y. Mizun, poor nutrition and unhealthy diet
was indicated as one of the main reasons for the deterioration of
health status and decreased life expectancy for the residents of
the Russian North during the last decade (Zaidfudim & Mizun,
1998). In the Murmansk region, the average life expectancy was 70.3
years in 1990. In four years it has fallen to 63.1 years, which
puts it below the 1994 Russian average of 64.0 years. After the
year of 1994 the situation improved slightly, but this indicator
in the Murmansk region remains below the Russian average. The same
applies to other Russian Territories of the Barents Region (Economic
Geography and Structure of the Russian Territories of the Barents
Region, 1999. |
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A significant difference in the patterns
of disease is observed in different parts of the Barents region.
For men, cancer of the stomach is most widespread in the Russian
regions, whereas cancer of the bladder and prostate are most widespread
in the Norwegian and Finnish regions. Cancer of the respiratory
organs and mouth is most prevalent in the Murmansk and Archangelsk
regions, and is also high for the Finnish region. For women, breast
cancer is most frequent in the Swedish region, and stomach cancer
is prevalent in the Russian territories of the Barents region. |
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Very marked differences are observed
between the regions belonging to the Nordic countries and the Russian
ones, regarding tuberculosis. While diagnosed cases of tuberculosis
make 2.6 cases per 100 000 inhabitants in the Norwegian Barents
region, in the Republic of Karelia, it makes 71.4 cases, 56.6 cases
in the Arkhangelsk region and 33.0 cases in the Murmansk region
(Health Statistic Indicators for the Barents Euro-Arctic Region,
1998). For the Russian North, a dramatic increase in infectious
diseases like tuberculosis and diphtheria (and other diseases that
were extinguished some years ago), is one of the trends of the last
ten years. |
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According to regional statistics,
in the settlements of the Murmansk region, the diseases of the respiratory
system occupy first place on the list of the most widespread illnesses,
the diseases of the nervous system occupy second place and the blood
and blood-forming organ diseases, occupy third place (Murmansk Regional
Committee on Environment Protection, 1998). |
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In the Russian North, illness rates for tuberculosis, hepatitis,
respiratory infections and alcoholism are 1.5-2 times higher among
the indigenous population than among the non-indigenous population
(Zaidfudim & Mizun, 1998). Alcohol is one of the major problems
for indigenous populations, (be it American Indians, Alaska Natives,
Kola Sami or indigenous people of Siberia). Alcohol contributes
to high rates of motor vehicle crashes, cirrhosis, suicide, homicide
and domestic abuse. For example, in Lovozero district of the Murmansk
region, (where Kola Sami reside) about 90% of Sami teenagers (under
16 years old) use alcohol, and every 9th Kola Sami youngster is
addicted to alcohol (Zaidfudim & Mizun, 1998). Alcohol problems
are typical for the population of the remote rural settlements
in the region. This problem is especially acute in the places
of compact residence. The percentage of the indigenous population
living in places of compact residence is 7.9%. However, 16.6 %
of the total number of individuals diagnosed with "alcoholism",
are indigenous people living in places of compact residence (Murmansk
Regional Committee of State Statistics, 1999).
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