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The Indigenous Sami population have inhabited rural northern areas of Norway, Sweden, Finland and the Kola Peninsula in Russia for thousands of years. Today, many Sami live in cities. No large quantitative studies have investigated the health and life of urban Sami in Norway. As a basis for further research, this paper describes the background, methods, participation and sample characteristics of the survey From Rural to Urban Living, conducted in 2014. The unique sampling design is based on internal migration records. Those invited were everyone born 1950–1975 who had relocated from preselected rural Sami core areas to cities in Norway. Their children above the age of 18 were also invited. The paper is descriptive with some basic statistical tests. In total, 2058 (response rate 34%) first-generation and 1168 (response rate 19%) second-generation migrants responded. The response rate was lowest in the younger age groups and among men. One out of three reported Sami background. The education level was in general high. From Rural to Urban Living enables numerous research possibilities within health and social sciences, and may contribute to new insight into the health, culture and identity of the growing Sami population in urban areas of Norway.

Objective: The aim of this study was to measure the prevalence of pre-diabetes and diabetes mellitus in rural populations of Norway, as well as to explore potential ethnic disparities with respect to dysglycaemia in Sami and non-Sami populations. Design: Cross-sectional population-based study. Methods: The SAMINOR1 study was performed in 2003–2004. The study took place in regions with both Sami and non-Sami populations and had a response rate of 60.9%. Information in the SAMINOR1 study was collected using two self-administered questionnaires, clinical examination and laboratory tests. The present analysis included 15,208 men and women aged 36–79 years from the SAMINOR1 study. Results: Age-standardised prevalence of pre-diabetes and diabetes mellitus among Sami men was 3.4 and 5.5%, respectively. Corresponding values for non-Sami men were 3.3 and 4.6%. Age-standardised prevalence of pre-diabetes and diabetes mellitus for Sami women was 2.7 and 4.8%, respectively, while corresponding values for non-Sami women were 2.3 and 4.5%. Relative risk ratios for dysglycaemia among Sami participants compared with non-Sami participants were significantly different in different geographical regions, with the southern region having the highest prevalence of pre-diabetes and diabetes mellitus among Sami participants. Conclusion: We observed a heterogeneity in the prevalence of pre-diabetes and diabetes mellitus in different geographical regions both within and between different ethnic groups.

Objectives: The Survey of Living Condition in the Arctic (SLiCA) is an international research project on health and living conditions among Arctic indigenous peoples. The main objective of this article is to examine the prevalence of self-reported suicide thoughts among the study population in Alaska, Greenland, Sweden and Norway. Study design: Population-based survey. Methods: Indigenous participants aged 16 years (15 years in Greenland) and older living in traditional settlement regions in Alaska, Sweden and Norway and across the entire Greenland were invited to participate. Data were collected in three periods: in Alaska from January 2002 to February 2003, in Greenland from December 2003 to August 2006, in Sweden from spring 2004 to 2006 and in Norway in 2003 and from June 2006 to June 2008. The principal method in SLiCA was standardised face-to-face interviews using a questionnaire. A questionnaire had among other things, questions about health, education, traditional activities, ethnicity and suicidal thoughts. Results: Information about suicidal thoughts, gender and age were available in 2,099 participants between the ages of 16 and 84 from Alaska, Greenland, Sweden and Norway. Greenland had the highest rates of suicidal thoughts when adjusting for age and gender (p=0.003). When stratifying on age and gender, significant differences across countries were only found for females in the two youngest age groups. Differences in suicidal thoughts across countries could partly be explained by educational level. Conclusion: Swedish respondents had less suicidal thoughts than those in any other countries. In the future, analyses of suicidal thoughts should take socioeconomic status into account as well as self- reported health, depression and anxiety.

The aim of this study was to determine and compare the prevalence of pre-diabetes and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) among Sami and non-Sami men and women of rural districts in Northern Norway. The SAMINOR 2 Clinical Survey is a cross-sectional population-based study performed in 2012–2014 in 10 municipalities of Northern Norway. A total of 12,455 Sami and non-Sami inhabitants aged 40–79 years were invited to participate and 5878 were included in the analyses. Participants with self-reported T2DM and/or a glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c) result ≥6.5% were categorised as having T2DM. Those with 5.7%≤HbA1c

Objective: Measure the prevalence of self-reported myocardial infarction (SMI) in Sami and non-Sami populations in rural areas of Norway, and explore whether possible ethnic differences could be explained by established cardiovascular risk factors. Design: Cross-sectional population-based study. Methods: A health survey was conducted in 2003–2004 in areas with Sami and non-Sami populations (SAMINOR). The response rate was 60.9%. Information concerning lifestyle was collected by 2 self-administrated questionnaires, and clinical examinations provided anthropometric measurements, and data on blood pressure and lipid levels. Results: The total number for the subsequent analysis was 15,206 men and women aged 36–79 years (born 1925–1968). Sex-specific analyses revealed no ethnic difference in SMI. In terms of the most important risk factors such as smoking, blood pressure, and lipid levels, no or only trivial ethnic differences were found in both women and men. Conclusion: In this study, we found no difference in SMI between Sami and non-Sami in rural areas in Norway. The similar risk profile is the most plausible explanation; similar living conditions and close interaction between the ethnic groups may explain this.