Medical researchers working aboard an Arctic icebreaker near Pangnirtung, Nunavut, this week say Type 2 diabetes is one of their major health concerns they're looking for in Inuit.

More than 40 doctors, nurses, other health staff, interpreters and interviewers with the Nunavut Inuit Health Survey arrived in Pangnirtung earlier this week — the 13th community they've visited since August, travelling around Nunavut on board the Amundsen coast guard research icebreaker.

Survey staff near Pangnirtung, Nunavut, help passengers off a barge and onto the Arctic icebreaker Amundsen for health tests.
(Patricia Bell/CBC)

The survey project — also known as Qanuippitali? in Inuktitut, which translates to, "How about us, how are we?" — is believed to be the largest Inuit health survey ever conducted in Canada, as staff test Inuit for various diseases.

Nearly 850 Inuit have taken part in the survey since it began in early August, with stops to date in communities in the Kivalliq and Baffin regions.

Randomly selected Inuit participants are brought by barge on board the Amundsen for two- to three-hour medical appointments. They're then asked to fill out questionnaires on their lifestyles and living conditions, as well as take medical tests for diabetes, stroke, bone density, contaminants and other health issues.

"It is [a] really good idea," participant Meeka Alivaktuk said. "I wanted to come here because I wanted to know my health."

Researchers with the survey are especially interested in detecting the warning signs for diabetes among Inuit, especially those in Pangnirtung: in 2005, a pilot project done there in advance of the survey found several cases of pre-diabetes among residents.

Those in the pre-diabetes stage can still avoid having diabetes, survey operational manager Guylaine Charbonneau said. While genetics is one factor in Type 2 diabetes, so are lifestyle factors such as exercise and diet, she added.

"Hopefully they're still in a pre-diabetic stage because you can still try and prevent it. Once you're diabetic, it's not really reversible," Charbonneau said.

"So that's why we try and get them before they're diabetic, so we can try to prevent the disease."

Six more communities are on the ship's itinerary after Pangnirtung, but it remains to be seen if they'll all be visited this year. Charbonneau said that will depend on many factors, including the weather.