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July 04, 2018CANADIAN COMMUNITY HEALTH SURVEY, 2017 Statistics Canada has released results from the 2017 Canadian Community Health Survey. This survey is an annual population health survey that provides insight into the health conditions and behaviours of the Canadian population.
In 2017, 60.6 per cent of Nova Scotians aged 12 and over perceived their health as very good or excellent. This was just below the Canadian average of 61.0 per cent and on par with recent years. Alberta reported the highest proportion of the population with self-perceived very good or excellent health (63.3 per cent) and New Brunswick had the lowest (56.5 per cent). In the same year, 14.2 per cent of Nova Scotians aged 12 and over perceived their health as fair or poor. This was above the Canadian average of 11.2 per cent. Quebec had the lowest incidence of self-perceived fair or poor health (9.4 per cent) and New Brunswick had the highest (15.8 per cent).
In 2017, 66.0 per cent of Nova Scotians aged 12 and over perceived their mental health as very good or excellent. This was below the Canadian average of 70.3 per cent and was the lowest among the ten provinces. Quebec had the highest proportion of the population with mental health perceived as very good or excellent at 73.8 per cent. Nova Scotia had the highest percentage of the population with self-perceived fair or poor mental health at 9.2 per cent of the population, above the Canadian average of 7.0 per cent. Self-perceived fair or poor mental health was lowest in Quebec (5.1 per cent of the population).
Across age groups, Nova Scotians report no worse health outcomes than the national average. Overall perceptions of health are relatively low due to the province's age structure. Younger populations tend to report better health than older ones. Nova Scotia has a higher proportion of people over 50 years old and a smaller proportion of the population aged 12 to 49 compared to the national average. This results in the overall perception of health in Nova Scotia being lower in percentage terms than the national average.
Perceived mental health as "very good or excellent" is lower for every age group in Nova Scotia compared to the national average. The gap is largest for those aged 35 to 49.
In 2017, 91.1 per cent of Nova Scotians aged 12 and over were satisfied or very satisfied with their lives. This was below the Canadian average of 92.9 per cent and the lowest among the ten provinces. The highest was in Quebec, where 94.0 per cent of the population reported being satisfied or very satisfied with life.
Perceived life stress measures the percentage of the population aged 12 and over who reported perceiving that most days in their life were quite a bit or extremely stressful. In 2017, 19.4 per cent of the population aged 12 and over in Nova Scotia reported perceived life stress. This was below the Canadian average of 21.7 per cent. The lowest incidence of perceived life stress was in Newfoundland and Labrador (14.9 per cent) and the highest was in Quebec (24.7 per cent).
In Nova Scotia, the percent of the population aged 12 and over who reported being a daily smoker of cigarettes was 13.1 per cent in 2017. This is down from previous years but still higher than the Canadian average of 11.6 per cent. The highest incidence of daily cigarette smokers was in Newfoundland and Labrador (19.4 per cent) and the lowest was in British Columbia (8.5 per cent).
Body mass index (BMI) is based on the height and weight provided by survey respondents. It a way to classify weight according to health risk. According to World Health Organization Classification, 'overweight' BMI is 25.00 to 29.99 and 'obese' BMI is 30.00 or higher for the population aged 18 years and over. Overweight BMI is associated with an increased health risk, and obese carries high health risks.
In 2017, the percent of the population aged 18 and over reporting being overweight and obese in Nova Scotia was 34.3 per cent and 34.6 per cent, respectively. The highest incidence of overweight BMI was in Prince Edward Island (38.5 per cent), and the lowest was in Manitoba (33.7 per cent). The highest incidence of obese BMI was in Newfoundland and Labrador (38.0 per cent) and the lowest was in British Columbia (21.8 per cent). Nationally, the percentage of the population aged 18 and over reporting overweight BMI was 36.0 per cent, while 26.9 per cent reporting obese BMI.
For youth aged 12 to 17, 30.5 per cent reported either overweight or obese BMI in Nova Scotia in 2017. This was above the Canadian average of 27.9 per cent. Overweight or obese BMI for youth declined in 2017 in Nova Scotia. The lowest percentage was in British Columbia (21.4 per cent) and the highest was in Newfoundland and Labrador (36.4 per cent).
Canadian Community Health Survey, 2017
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