New population study: Language, family, and community are also health
April 14, 2025|Written by Christine Hyldal
Written by Christine Hyldal
We smoke thousands of cigarettes and drink tons of soda. However, our relationship with nature and family is so good for our health that it needs to be investigated further in the new population study.
More than half of us smoke daily, and 44 percent drink sugary juice or soda every day. But 86 percent of us are also active for at least an hour a day, and a third eat meat from marine mammals every week.
That – and much more – was shown in the last population survey, which was published in 2019. Now, researchers at the Center for Public Health are working on a new one, which will be released in 2027.
However, something new will happen in the process of this population survey because health is more than just oatmeal for breakfast and 10,000 steps a day in this country.
Strength and values
So-called “sharing circles“ will be introduced – a form of group conversation. These discussions dive deeper into local strengths and values, and people will be asked about topics such as nature, family, community, Greenlandic food, and the Greenlandic language.
These informal small-group conversations are meant to give researchers a broader understanding of the health model “Peqqissuserput“, which is based on citizens’ own perspectives on what health means to them. Peqqissuserput was developed by the Center for Public Health in Greenland, inspired in part by Alaska and Nunavut.
So Ingelise Olesen, a research coordinator at the Center for Public Health in Greenland, explains.
This is how it works
“3-15 people will be invited to participate in a sharing circle. For example, you could ask: What does language mean to you? Or what are your values?” she says.
“We know from many studies that sitting in groups generates good data. There is a facilitator in the group and he or she also shares their values and perspectives in the circle. It can be very emotional. It does something to you when you hear someone else’s story
The health model "Peqqissuserput" was developed by the Center for Public Health in Greenland.
Greenlandic food is filled with emotion and identity.
Ingelise Olesen explains what people can talk about in sharing circles:
Family: For generations, the family has been the people with whom we share our sorrows and joys from birth to death. Family has always been very important to us, so our shared health must be based on family. However, family can be many things and is not always defined by genes. It can be relations too.
Community: When you ask individuals what is important to them, they answer “community”. For many, there is a perception that being alone is unhealthy. For example, people often answer “national day” when asked to name something that defines their cultural sense of community.
Language:You are part of others through your language, and d it is through our language that we pass on our intergenerational knowledge. It is a value, and therefore, it relates to health.
Greenlandic food:It is full of emotion; it’s part of our identity. We get defensive as soon as someone says there are PFAS in our seafood. There are so many emotions associated with our food, and there is an understanding that it’s the healthiest thing you can have. And then others can say whatever they want.
Nature:All we have to do is look out the window, and we know what effect it has on us. Nature is also associated with being physically active. There, you get food as well as inner peace and balance.
Body, mind, and spirit: When you ask people: What is the spirit? Some will say religion. Others will say it is what characterizes who we are, who we were and what we are becoming.
Ingelise Olesen believes it is very important to get answers about smoking habits, growing up conditions, cannabis, alcohol, gambling, exercise, suicide, grief, violence, sexual assault and education, which are some of the things a population study maps. But the broader understanding of health is just as important, she emphasizes. Because what can’t be measured in a bar chart can give researchers an insight into our understanding of health.
How important is it on a scale from one to 100?
“For me, Peqqissuserput and that understanding of health is fundamental when working with health in a Greenlandic context. So 100,” she says.
“The holistic approach is something we need to continue to work on and learn more about – and sharing circles can contribute questions to a future population survey.”
More than half of us smoke every day. Will there be factors you can find in Peqqissuserput that can be used to prevent smoking?
“Not directly,” replies Ingelise Olesen. Rather, there will be approaches to work with prevention and better health approaches.
“We can start with local values and the way we live our lives. Maybe we need to involve the whole family? It’s an understanding that we don’t necessarily have to do what we do everywhere else in the world.”