| Title |
Toxins and tradition: the impact of food-chain contamination on the Inuit of northern Quebec.
|
|---|---|
| Published in |
Canadian Medical Association Journal, April 1995
|
| Pubmed ID | |
| Authors |
J Wormworth |
| Abstract |
The dependence of Quebec Inuit on their traditional diet, known as "country food," is complicated by the presence of toxins in the northern food chain. Dr. Eric Dewailly's unexpected finding of high levels of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) in Inuit women's breast milk prompted years of research into this troubling public health issue. In his recent study of heavy-metal contaminants Dewailly found that mercury and organic chlorine compounds such as PCBs were the major toxins in Inuit blood samples. Although not present at levels high enough to endanger adults, these contaminants may have adverse developmental effects on fetuses and breast-fed infants. Although country food is a major source of contaminants, it contains important nutrients that counter some of the toxic effects. Dewailly's research indicates that the nutritional, economic and cultural benefits of country food far outweigh the risks. |
Mendeley readers
The data shown below were compiled from readership statistics for 56 Mendeley readers of this research output. Click here to see the associated Mendeley record.
Geographical breakdown
| Country | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Canada | 1 | 2% |
| Unknown | 55 | 98% |
Demographic breakdown
| Readers by professional status | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Student > Master | 12 | 21% |
| Student > Ph. D. Student | 11 | 20% |
| Student > Bachelor | 9 | 16% |
| Researcher | 7 | 13% |
| Student > Doctoral Student | 4 | 7% |
| Other | 9 | 16% |
| Unknown | 4 | 7% |
| Readers by discipline | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Medicine and Dentistry | 12 | 21% |
| Agricultural and Biological Sciences | 9 | 16% |
| Environmental Science | 8 | 14% |
| Psychology | 5 | 9% |
| Nursing and Health Professions | 5 | 9% |
| Other | 12 | 21% |
| Unknown | 5 | 9% |
Attention Score in Context
This research output has an Altmetric Attention Score of 1. This is our high-level measure of the quality and quantity of online attention that it has received. This Attention Score, as well as the ranking and number of research outputs shown below, was calculated when the research output was last mentioned on 26 October 2019.
All research outputs
#22,764,772
of 25,382,440 outputs
Outputs from Canadian Medical Association Journal
#9,098
of 9,453 outputs
Outputs of similar age
#23,198
of 23,578 outputs
Outputs of similar age from Canadian Medical Association Journal
#14
of 16 outputs
Altmetric has tracked 25,382,440 research outputs across all sources so far. This one is in the 1st percentile – i.e., 1% of other outputs scored the same or lower than it.
So far Altmetric has tracked 9,453 research outputs from this source. They typically receive a lot more attention than average, with a mean Attention Score of 34.1. This one is in the 1st percentile – i.e., 1% of its peers scored the same or lower than it.
Older research outputs will score higher simply because they've had more time to accumulate mentions. To account for age we can compare this Altmetric Attention Score to the 23,578 tracked outputs that were published within six weeks on either side of this one in any source. This one is in the 1st percentile – i.e., 1% of its contemporaries scored the same or lower than it.
We're also able to compare this research output to 16 others from the same source and published within six weeks on either side of this one. This one is in the 1st percentile – i.e., 1% of its contemporaries scored the same or lower than it.