Trace element status and health of Northern populations: a scientific review

Available publications define the objectives of biogeochemistry and introduce its key concepts: living matter and biogenic migration of chemical elements. According to studies, the biochemical parameters of living organisms depend on the geochemical environment and the content of essential elements within it. Researchers suggest that the physiological system of trace elements in living organisms serves as a structural and functional basis for metabolic processes. Biogeochemical provinces are areas with imbalanced concentrations of chemical elements. Trace element imbalance is geochemical diseases in humans and animals, with defined mechanisms of formation. Evidence shows that both deficiencies and excess of bioelements in the human body contribute to psychosomatic disorders, such as lifestyle diseases, reduced fertility, an increase in infertile marriages, and various forms of deviant behavior. Regional biogeochemical research is needed to study the distribution of chemical elements in the environment, plants, animals, and the human body. The natural and climatic conditions and the biogeochemical profile of northern regions are still poorly studied, particularly with regard to the elemental status of residents in the Arctic areas. Low levels of essential elements in the biosphere of the North create a biological burden for the population and contribute to an increased risk of trace element imbalance. Studies have identified common features of elemental status among residents of both the Asian and European North, including widespread deficiencies of cobalt, selenium, calcium, and iodine. Among migrants to the North, lower levels of iron, selenium, and fluoride lead to an acclimatization-related deficiency of these elements. The published data also indicates that the biosphere of the North is polluted. Arctic contamination affects soil and vegetation, drinking water, and leads to bioaccumulation of toxic elements such as mercury, lead, cadmium, and arsenic in living organisms. Nutritional patterns in the North are characterized by a reduced share of traditional food products in the local diet. The natural deficiency of essential elements, enhanced by the loss of biologically valuable nutrition, contributes to further deficiency of iron, zinc, cobalt, copper, manganese, iodine, and selenium, reducing the human body’s adaptive potential in northern conditions. An analysis of ecological and medical issues related to iodine allows clarifying its physiological role, assessing iodine sufficiency among the Russian population, identifying iodine deficiency as a public health concern, and proposing corrective measures. In conclusion, maintaining the health of northern populations requires biogeochemical monitoring of Arctic regions, identification of territories predisposed to biogeochemical endemics, and prevention of diseases of geochemical origin.