Total Energy Expenditure and Physical Activity Profiles Among Reindeer Herders and Office Workers of Northern Finland

In the Arctic, climate change increases extreme weather events and unpredictability, affects food chains, increases transportational needs, and decreases physical activity (PA) and estimated total energy expenditure (eTEE). Thus, understanding how climate change affects inhabitants of different environments is increasingly important. The reindeer herders of Finnish Lapland are exposed to changing weather conditions year-round and have a highly physically demanding occupation.

We studied eTEE, physical activity level (PAL), and PA profiles of reindeer herders (n = 10) and office workers (n = 13) in the Inari Municipality area in Finland February of 2023 as a pilot study. eTEE was estimated using the FLEX-HR method and PA parameters were measured using accelerometry.

We did not observe any statistically significant differences between the occupations, but there was a trend of reindeer herders being heavier, having more muscle mass, and greater eTEEs relative to office workers. eTEE for herders was 2887.1 ± 1675.4 and 2038.9 ± 593.1 kcal/day for office workers.

With the seasonal nature of reindeer herding, February is a period of relative ease following the physically demanding round-up period that lasts from September to January, which may explain these results. Furthermore, large variation in the main variables of eTEE and PAL highlights the need for a larger study population. Therefore, a seasonal assessment of PA and eTEE patterns in this unique population where herders and office workers live close to one another and share multiple lifestyle aspects in the rapidly warming Arctic is needed.