Research Publications:

  1. Little, M., Achouba, A., Ayotte, P., Lemire, M. (2023). Human health risk assessment of selenium: The need to re-evaluate Se requirements and recommendations for Inuit population in the Canadian Arctic. Nutrition Research Reviews. (Review Requested).

  2. Naylor, A., Kenny, T-A., Furgal, C., Warltier, D., Little, M. (2023). Cash economy and store-bought food biases in food security assessments of Inuit Nunangat. Arctic. (In Press).

  3. Little, M., Dodd, W., Brubacher, L. J., Richter, A. (2023). Food prescribing in Canada: Evidence, critiques, and opportunities. Health Promotion and Chronic Disease Prevention in Canada. (In Press). 

  4. Reynolds, L., Dewey, C., Asfour, G., & Little, M. Vaccine Efficacy against SARS-COV-2 for Pfizer BioN-Tech, Moderna, and AstraZeneca vaccines: A systematic review. Frontiers in Public Health, 11, 1229716.

  5. Little, M., Winters, W., Achouba, A., Magesky, A., Lemire, M., Ayotte, P. (2023). Weaving together Inuit knowledge and western science: A mixed-methods case study of qilalugaq (beluga whale) in Quaqtaq, Nunavik. Arctic Science. https://doi.org/10.1139/as-2022-0039

  6. Naylor, A., Kenny, T.-A., Furgal, C., Beale, D., Warltier, D., Carignan, M.-H., … Little, M. (2023). “Moving from understanding to action on food security in Inuit Nunangat”: : ArcticNet, 5th December 2022, Toronto, ON. Canadian Food Studies La Revue Canadienne Des études Sur l’alimentation, 10(2), 4–13. https://doi.org/10.15353/cfs-rcea.v10i2.643

  7. Naylor, A., Kenny, T. A., Harper, S., Beale, D., Premji, Z., Furgal, C., ... & Little, M. (2023). Inuit-defined determinants of food security in academic research focusing on Inuit Nunangat and Alaska: A scoping review protocol. Nutrition and Health, 29(2), 175-183.

  8. Pedro, S., Hoover, C., Saint-Béat, B., Janjua, M., Herbig, J., Geoffroy, M., Unda-Guarin, G., Moisin, M-A., Boissinot, J., Tremblay, J-É., Little, M., Babin, M., Kenny, T-A., Maps, F. (2023). A (scientific) ecological perspective of the structure and function of the Western Baffin Bay coastal and shelf ecosystem. Elementa: Science in the Anthropocene, 11(01).

  9. Brockington, M., Beale, D., Gaupholm, J., Naylor, A., Kenny, T-A., Lemire, M., Falardeau, M., Loring, P., Parmley, J., Little, M. (2023). Identifying Barriers and pathways linking fish and seafood to food security in Inuit Nunangat: A scoping review. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 20(3):2629. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20032629

  10. Naylor, A., Kenny, T. A., Harper, S., Beale, D., Premji, Z., Furgal, C., Little, M. (2023). Inuit-defined determinants of food security in academic research focusing on Inuit Nunangat and Alaska: A scoping review protocol. Nutrition and Health, doi: 02601060221151091.

  11. Aker, A., Ayotte, P., Furgal, C., Kenny, T. A., Little, M., Gauthier, M. J., Bouchard, A., & Lemire, M. (2022). Sociodemographic patterning of dietary profiles among Inuit youth and adults in Nunavik, Canada: a cross-sectional study. Canadian Journal of Public Health, 1-17.

  12. Zivot, C., Dewey, C., Brockington, M., Nwebube, C., Asfour, G., Vattikonda, N., Bell, D., Srinivasan, S., Little, M. (2022). Experiences of wellbeing and resilience among refugee mothers and families in Calgary during the COVID-19 pandemic, and the role of participation in HIPPY, a home visiting program. AIMS Public Health, 9(3), 521-541.

  13. Gaupholm, J., Papadopoulos, A., Asif, A., Dodd, W., Little, M. (2022). The Influence of food environments on dietary behaviour and nutrition in Southeast Asia: A Systematic Scoping Review. Nutrition and Health. doi: 10.1177/02601060221112810

  14. Dodd, W., Kipp, A., Lau, L., Little, M., Conchada, M.I., Sobreviñas, A., Tiongco, M., Sauler, M. M. (2022). Limits to transformational potential: Analysing entitlement and agency within a conditional cash transfer program in the Philippines. Social Policy and Society, 1-18. doi:10.1017/S1474746422000215

  15. MacDonald, H., Papadopoulos, A., Humphries, S., Dodd, W., Patel, K., Dewey, C., Little, M. (2022). Sociodemographic factors associated with knowledge of type 2 diabetes in rural Tamil Nadu: A cross-sectional study. Rural and Remote Health. https://www.rrh.org.au/journal/article/6855

  16. Little, M., Rosa, E., Heasley, C., Asif, A., Dodd, W., Richter, A. (2021). Promoting healthy food access and nutrition in primary care: A systematic scoping review of food prescription programs. American Journal of Health Promotion. doi: 08901171211056584

  17. Heasley, C., Clayton, B., Muileboom, J., Schwanke, A., Rathnayake, S., Little, M. (2021) “I was eating more fruits and veggies than I have in years”: An evaluation of a fresh food prescription pilot program. Archives of Public Health, 79(135).

  18. Dodd, W., Kipp, A., Little, M., Bustos, M., McNeil, A., Lau, L., Dodd, W. (2021) Humanitarian food security interventions during the COVID-19 pandemic in low- and middle-income countries: A review of global actions among international NGOs and UN agencies. Food Security, 3(7): 2333.

  19. Dodd, W. Kipp, A., Nicholson, B., Lau, L. L., Little, M., Walley, J., Wei, X. (2021) Governance of community health worker programs in a decentralized health system: A qualitative study in the Philippines. BMC Health Services, 21(1), 1-14.

  20. Kenny, TA; Lemire, M; Little, M; Pétrin-Desrosier, C; Plante, E; Poitras, J; Eddy, T; Ota, Y; Polanco, F; Chan, HM. (2020). Climate, oceans, and human health: Navigating changes on Canada’s coasts. Facets, 5(1): 1037-1070.

  21. Zivot, C., Dewey, C., Heasley, C., Srinivasan, S., & Little, M. (2020). Exploring the state of gender-centered health research in the context of refugee resettlement in Canada: A scoping review. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 17(20), 7511

  22. Tahir, E., Ayotte, P., Little, M., Bélanger, R. E., Lucas, M., Mergler, D., ... & Lemire, M. (2020). Anemia, iron status, and associated protective and risk factors among children and adolescents aged 3 to 19 years old from four First Nations communities in Quebec. Canadian Journal of Public Health, 111(5), 682-693.

  23. de Moraes Pontual, M., Ayotte, P., Little, M., Furgal, C., Boyd, A. D., Muckle, G., Avard, E., & Lemire, M. (2020). Seasonal variations in exposure to methylmercury and its dietary sources among pregnant Inuit women in Nunavik, Canada. Science of The Total Environment, 143196.

  24. Kenny, T.-A., Little, M., Lemieux, T., Griffin, P.J., Wesche, S.D., Ota, Y., Batal, M., Chan, H.M., Lemire, M. (2020). The retail food sector and Indigenous Peoples in high-income countries: A systematic scoping review. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health, 17, 8818.

  25. Gaupholm, J., Little, M. (2020). Effectiveness of psychosocial services offered at a residential care home in the Philippines in preparing residents for life after care. Global Health Annual Review. https://journals.mcmaster.ca/ghar/article/download/2362/1748

  26. Little, M., Hagar, H., Zivot, C., Dodd, W., Kenny, T.A., Skinner, K., Caughey, A., Lemire, M. (2020). Drivers and health implications of the dietary transition among Inuit in the Canadian Artic: A scoping review. Public Health Nutrition, 1-19.

  27. Little, M., Humphries, S., Dodd, W., Dewey, C. (2020). Socio-demographic patterning of the individual-level double burden of malnutrition in a rural population in South India: A cross-sectional study. BMC Public Health, 20: 1-14.

  28. Little, M., Achouba, A., Dumas, P., Ouellet, N., Ayotte, P., Lemire, M. (2019). Determinants of selenoneine concentration in red blood cells of Inuit from Nunavik (Northern Québec, Canada). Environment International, 127: 243-252.

  29. Achouba, A., Dumas, P., Ouellet, N., Little, M., Lemire, M., & Ayotte, P. (2019). Selenoneine is a major selenium species in beluga skin and red blood cells of Inuit from Nunavik. Chemosphere, 229: 549-558.

  30. Little, M., Humphries, S., Zivot, C. Patel, K., Dewey, C, (2018). Prevalence and risk of iron-deficiency anemia among adults in a community of rural southern India: A cross-sectional study. Anemia. https://doi.org/10.1155/2018/7123976.

  31. Dodd, W., Wyngaarden, S., Humphries, S., Patel, K., Majowicz, S., Little, M., & Dewey, C. (2018). The relationship between MGNREGA and internal labour migration in Tamil Nadu, India. European Journal of Development Research, 30:178-194. doi:10.1057/s41287-017-0122-3

  32. Dodd, W., Humphries, S., Patel, K., Majowicz, S., Little, M., Dewey, C. (2017). Determinants of internal migrant health and the healthy migrant effect in South India: A mixed methods study. BMC International Health and Human Rights, 17(23).

  33. Little, M., Humphries, S., Patel, K., Dodd, W., Dewey, C. (2016). Factors associated with glucose tolerance, pre-diabetes, and type 2 diabetes in a rural community of south India: A cross-sectional study. Diabetology & Metabolic Syndrome, 8(21).

  34. Little, M., Humphries, S., Patel, K., Dewey, C. (2016). Factors associated with BMI, underweight, overweight, and obesity among adults in a population of rural south India: A cross-sectional study. BMC Obesity, 3(21).

  35. Little, M., Humphries, S., Patel, K., Dewey, C. (2016). Decoding the type 2 diabetes epidemic in rural India. Medical Anthropology, 36(2): 96-110.

  36. Dodd, W., King, N., Humphries, S., Little, M., Dewey, C. (2016). Self-reported morbidity and health service utilization in rural Tamil Nadu, India. Social Science & Medicine, 161:118-125.

  37. Little, M. (2012). Type 2 diabetes in Guatemala: disease perceptions, service provision difficulties, and management techniques. Undercurrent Journal, 9(1):24-35.

I’m involved in the following research projects:

Environmental contaminants, nutrition, and human health in Nunavik 2004-2017: Analyzing existing data and promoting health of Nunavimmiut
This project aims to use existing data collected between 2004 and 2017 in Nunavik to further investigate associations between socio-demographic factors, dietary intake, nutritional status, exposure to environmental contaminants, and Inuit health outcomes. Specific analyses will focus on: (1) determinants of nutrition; (2) associations between persistent organic pollutants and cardiometabolic and respiratory health outcomes; and (3) effects of long-term exposure to contaminants using data from 2004–2017.
Funding: Northern Contaminants Program

A fresh food prescriptions (FFRx) in Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph region
This project grew out of a partnership with the SEED, a working group of the Guelph Community Health Centre. This ongoing project aims to link food insecure individuals with cardio-metabolic health concerns to community supports for addressing food insecurity and nutritional health. The program leverages patients’ relationships with healthcare providers to provide ‘fresh food prescriptions’, including vouchers to local community food markets, access to dietitians and nutritionists, and access to community food programs (e.g. community kitchens and cooking workshops). The research project evaluates the impacts of the intervention on food security, health, and access to community supports.
Funding: Alliance for Healthy Communities, Ontario Trillium Foundation, Canadian Institutes of Health Research, Public Health Agency of Canada

Co-developing innovative approaches with Indigenous partners to foster coastal resilience, food security, and sustainable marine harvests
This two-year project aims to co-develop integrated scientific and traditional knowledge regarding current and future human health resilience and potential impacts from climate change. The purpose of this project is to leverage existing dietary information from Qikiqtarjuaq (3 previous studies including the Inuit Health Survey 2007-08) and ocean observation data to: (1) forecast future changes in seafood accessibility and availability, Inuit nutrition, food security, and health; and (2) work with Inuit partners to co-construct evidence-based adaptation strategies to promote food security and sustainable marine harvests in the context of Arctic environmental changes and proactively respond to marine risks.
Funding: Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), Marine Environment Observation Prediction and Response (MEOPAR) Network, ArcticNet

Community Engagement for Health Solutions in Low-resource Settings in the Philippines
This multi-year project is a collaboration between the University of Waterloo, the University of Guelph, and International Care Ministries (ICM), an NGO based in the Philippines. Several sub-projects aim to tackle diverse health challenges, including: (1) Social determinants of tuberculosis infection and care; (2) Assessing political, economic, and socio-cultural dimensions of food security; and (3) Integrating participatory approaches into randomized controlled trials conducted by ICM.
Funding: Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), Social Science and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC)

Social, cultural, and demographic factors affecting access to and consumption of traditional country foods in Nunavik (Northern Quebec, Canada)
The harvest and consumption of traditional foods (locally called ‘country foods’) is a cornerstone of Inuit culture, sovereignty, food security, and nutrition. For Inuit communities in Nunavik, northern Quebec, country foods such as marine fish and mammals (e.g. Arctic char, seal, and beluga), caribou, birds (e.g. goose), and berries are vital sources of calories, protein, essential fatty acids, as well as lesser-known micronutrients such as vitamin A, vitamin B-6, iron, selenium (Se). However, commonly-consumed fish and marine mammals are also exceptionally high in a wide range of environmental contaminants, including methylmercury (MeHg). Exposure to such contaminants has wide-ranging health implications for the Inuit populations, including pre-natal complications, neurological deficits, nervous system abnormalities, and possibly a higher risk of cardiometabolic disorders. We are currently working in coordination with Nunavimmiut communities and partners to collect wildlife samples for nutrient and toxicant analysis, as well as conduct interviews and KT workshops with community members to determine food consumption patterns linkages between cultural/gender norms, food security, country food consumption, and subsequent health impacts. This project is embedded within the processes of the nutrition transition and climate change, with a goal of improving health, nutrition, and climate change adaptation outcomes for Inuit communities in Nunavik.
Funding: Northern Contaminants Program, Health Canada, and Canadian Institutes of Health Research

Exposure to food chain contaminants in Nunavik: biomonitoring in adult and youth cohorts of the Qanuilirpitaa survey
Inuit are exposed to a wide range of environmental contaminants through their diet which comprises significant amounts of fish and sea mammals. During the past 25 years, our team has monitored the exposure of Nunavimmiut to persistent organic pollutants (POPs) and metals, starting with the Santé Québec Inuit Health Survey in 1992, which was followed by the Qanuippitaa? 2004 Health Survey and more recently by the Qanuilirpitaa? 2017 Health Survey. From 1992 to 2004, for most legacy POPs, a significant decrease trend was confirmed in environmental components, and wildlife and circumpolar Inuit exposure data. Despite a decreasing trend mostly due to reduced consumption of country foods, mercury (Hg) and lead (Pb) exposures remain topical issues, particularly among childbearing and pregnant women in Nunavik. In addition, each year, new chemicals are introduced in the market. These “New POPs and Contaminants of Emerging Concern (CECs)” now reach the Arctic food chain and very little is known about their concentrations and temporal and regional trends in Inuit. This project aims at providing current data on exposure to food-chain contaminants and key nutrients in a representative sample of the Inuit population of Nunavik within the framework of the Qanuilirpitaa Nunavik Inuit Health Survey, to which 1327 Nunavimmiut participated in 2017. This project will allow Canada to maintain its role at the forefront of international biomonitoring efforts on long-range environmental contaminants exposure among circumpolar populations and contribute to understanding the risks and benefits of country foods consumption in the Arctic.
Funding: Northern Contaminants Program

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Climate change and Indigenous food systems, food security, and food safety
A changing climate will affect food through a range of effects on agriculture, livestock, water systems, and wildlife, which have implications for food security, foodborne disease, and malnutrition. Indigenous populations who rely on the environment for livelihoods are considered highly sensitive to these impacts. The Climate Change and Indigenous Food System, Food Security, & Food Safety (Climate Change IFS3) research program addresses a significant deficit in understanding the food-related health (agri-health) dimensions of climate change among Indigenous populations globally. The research program has created a multinational intersectoral team to characterize the vulnerability and resilience of Indigenous food systems to climate change to inform, enhance, and expand climate change adaptation interventions and adaptation planning. The program responds to needs identified by communities, public health units, Indigenous organizations, governments, and the United Nations through ongoing partnerships with Inuit (Canada), Batwa (Uganda), and Shawi (Peru) populations. Working within these regions, the program has 3 research pillars: 1) Community-driven environment and health surveillance, 2) Projecting climate change impacts on agri-health outcomes, and 3) Developing place-based adaptation pathways.
Funding: Canadian Institutes of Health Research