The First Nations Gwich'in community of Tetlit Zheh in the Northwest Territories of Canada has been undergoing a nutrition transition. Studies conducted in the mid-1990s indicated that the majority of the Gwich'in diet consisted of store-bought (market) food, a high proportion of which was calorie-rich but nutrient-poor. As part of the Indigenous Peoples' Food Systems for Health Program, Tetlit Zheh agreed
to participate in activities to increase the consumption of traditional (local) food and healthier market food. Pre-intervention assessment was carried out in winter (February to March) 2006 among youth aged ten to 15 years and young women aged 20 to 40 years. Compared with the overall Canadian population, data indicated a similar proportion of overweight/obese youth, but a greater proportion of overweight/obese women. Compared with overall Canadian youth, Tetlit Zheh youth spent similar
amounts of their leisure time with television or computers. The majority of women were assessed as moderately active, and youth reported having participated in a wide range of physical activities throughout the year. The most important traditional food species consumed by youth and women were caribou, moose and whitefish. The majority of both youth and women consumed at least one traditional food item regularly. Post-intervention activity assessments were not conducted because external
forces precluded the documentation of behaviour and food consumption change. Climate change and other factors that reduced access to traditional food species, and a sharp increase in market food and fuel prices (2008) were important challenges.