Chapter 6: Diabetes in Aboriginal Communities

Introduction

This chapter gives a summary of diabetes and its repercussions among Aboriginal people in Canada. It is important to mention that many sub-populations are included in the Aboriginal communities and, in this report, they can be divided into four (4) groups: On-reserve First Nations, Off-reserve First Nations, Métis and Inuit. We focus on all these groups, although limited data exists on Métis and Inuit people. Much of the essential information presented in this chapter come however from the report "Diabetes Among Aboriginal People in Canada: The Evidence"¹.

Diabetes is a very important issue in the Aboriginal communities for a variety of reasons:

• High rate of disease and earlier onset;
• Late detection or diagnosis leading to greater severity at diagnosis;
• High rates of complications;
• Lack of accessible services;
• Increasing prevalence of risk factors for a population already at risk;
• Prevalence of diabetes among First Nations is now at least three times the national average;
• Most Aboriginal people with diabetes are women;
• Diabetes is now considered an epidemic in the Aboriginal communities.

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