Two new studies have shown how the basic nutritional needs of indigenous Australians are not being met.
Researchers have detected iodine deficiency – previously thought to occur only in the nation’s south-eastern states – for the first time among an Aboriginal population in the NT.
Almost 400 aboriginal teens living in remote as well as urban areas of the Darwin Health Region, which covers 120,000 km-square of the top end of the NT, were assessed in the study.
Lead researcher Dr Dorothy Mackerras said the urine tests revealed mild to moderate iodine deficiency, and the effect of this should be the subject of future research.
“Our results are a reminder that iodine deficiency affects males and females of all ages, although most surveys target only primary school-aged children and pregnant women,” said Dr Mackerras of the Darwin-based Menzies School of Health Research.
“We recommend that future health studies in indigenous populations should assess the possibility that iodine deficiency may be a significant contributor to ill health and disability.”
Dr Mackerras also said the situation was “expected to have improved” as the samples were collected between 2005 – 2008 and, critically, before the nationwide move to mandatory bread fortification in late 2009.
The nation’s bakers are now required to use only iodised salt in their processes, in a move to combat the re-emergence of iodine deficiency across the broader Australian population.
Iodine is essential for the healthy development of the brain, and iodine deficiency is the world’s leading cause of mental retardation in children.
A separate study has also highlighted the “highly prevalent” problem of low levels of vitamin D among the indigenous population.
University of Adelaide researcher Dr Simon Vanlint studied a group of 58 Aboriginal adults in South Australia, and it showed they had significantly lower vitamin D levels compared to those with paler skin.
Because the brown skin pigment melanin filters ultraviolet light, darker-skinned individuals synthesise less vitamin D and this can lead to a range of health problems.
“Vitamin D insufficiency is highly prevalent in this population of adult Aboriginal Australians, with low levels found in all seasons other than summer,” Dr Vanlint said.
“This has also been shown in African-Americans, Pacific Islander and Maori people and Indigenous Canadians.”
Vitamin D plays an important role in helping the body to absorb calcium and maintain healthy bones, muscles and teeth.
A lack of the vitamin can increase the risk of bone and muscle pain, rickets in children and osteoporosis.
Recent studies have also suggested links between the deficiency and a wide range of conditions including diabetes, heart disease, cancer, lung disease, mental health problems, skin disorders and some auto-immune diseases.
“If appropriate sunlight exposure is not sufficient or not possible, vitamin D is very safe to give as a supplement, and is not expensive,” Dr Vanlint said.
Both research papers are published in the latest edition of the Medical Journal of Australia
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