Data Blog
You’re reading our Data Blogs, a great way of getting quick facts, and the latest data, on different public health topics.
Injuries from winter sports and activities
Winter in Canada provides favourable weather conditions for outdoor sports and recreational activities, including skiing, snowboarding, ice skating and sledding. While there are numerous health benefits resulting from these sports and activities, there are also risks of serious injuries. This data blog presents injury statistics on popular winter sports and activities...
Antimicrobial Resistance in Canada: Findings from the 2022 Canadian Antimicrobial Resistance Surveillance System Report
Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is one of the top 10 global public health issues. Many existing antimicrobial drugs, such as antibiotics, are becoming less effective at treating infections, and drug-resistant pathogens continue to emerge...
Antimicrobial use (AMU) in the Canadian community sector
The emergence of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is an increasing concern for global health and is recognized by the World Health Organization (WHO) as one of the top ten public health threats. The unnecessary use and overuse of antimicrobials is a primary driver of the emergence of antibiotic resistant organisms (AROs)...
Canada's breastfeeding dashboard
This dashboard presents data about breastfeeding in Canada, including related factors such as age, education and immigration status. The data is from the 2017-2018 Canadian Community Health Survey. It reflects information gathered from survey respondents who were between the ages of 15 and 55, identified as female, and had given birth in the previous 5 years...
Interactive Data Visualizations of COVID-19 in Canada
COVID-19 (novel coronavirus) is a serious health threat, and the situation is evolving daily. Explore our COVID-19 data products and data visualizations.
The Canadian Nosocomial Infection Surveillance Program (CNISP)
Healthcare-acquired infections (HAIs), also known as nosocomial infections, are infectious diseases acquired in health care facilities such as hospitals. Many HAIs are caused by antimicrobial-resistant organisms (AROs), such as methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus (VRE). The Canadian Nosocomial Infection Surveillance Program (CNISP)...
How has COVID-19 impacted access to STBBI-related health services, including harm reduction services, for African, Caribbean and Black (ACB) people in Canada?
Since the start of Canada’s COVID-19 pandemic, challenges in delivering healthcare services including sexually transmitted and blood-borne infection (STBBI) prevention, testing and treatment services, including harm reduction services, have been reported across the country. These disruptions may have had a greater impact on populations most at risk for HIV and/or hepatitis C including African, Caribbean and Black (ACB) communities...
Parkinson's Awareness Month
Parkinson’s disease is a neurodegenerative disorder. It results from the progressive loss of dopamine-producing cells in the brain. Dopamine is a chemical that carries signals between nerves in the brain and controls the body’s movements. Decreasing amounts of dopamine to the brain can lead to the four main symptoms of Parkinson’s disease...
Breast Implant-Associated Anaplastic Large Cell Lymphoma (BIA-ALCL) – Canadian Surveillance Data
Breast implant-associated anaplastic large cell lymphoma (BIA-ALCL) is a cancer of the immune system that can develop next to a breast implant. Knowledge of BIA-ALCL continues to evolve...
Drug Analysis Service: Analyzed Drug Report
Health Canada’s Drug Analysis Service (DAS) operates laboratories across Canada that analyze suspected illegal drugs seized by Canadian law enforcement agencies. These statistics are based on samples analyzed and may not be representative of substances seized in Canada, nor of what drugs are circulating on the market...
Opioid- and Stimulant-Related Harms in Canada
Canada continues to experience a serious opioid crisis. Across the country, it is having devastating effects on families and communities. The Public Health Agency of Canada works closely with the provinces and territories to collect and share data on opioid-related harms (deaths, hospitalizations and emergency medical service...
Sentinel Surveillance of Substance-Related Poisonings in Canada: Spotlight on Cannabis
Substance-related poisonings and injuries in Canada have received increasing attention in recent years due to emerging public health concerns, such as the opioid overdose crisis, the introduction of synthetic cannabinoids to the illicit market and the emergence of electronic cigarettes/vaping products on the Canadian market. Furthermore, there has been a general increase in substance-related hospitalizations and deaths during the COVID-19 pandemic compared to the same period in 2019...
Cannabis Use For Non-medical Purposes Among Canadians (Aged 16+)
The Cannabis Act is a national framework to control the production, distribution, sale and possession of cannabis in Canada. The Cannabis Act and accompanying regulations came into force on October 17, 2018. To help evaluate the impact of the legalization and regulation of cannabis, Health Canada has been conducting the Canadian Cannabis Survey (CCS) to better understand how Canadians view and use cannabis...
Mental Illness during the Pandemic: Survey on COVID-19 and Mental Health
The Survey on COVID-19 and Mental Health was designed to collect data to assess the mental health and well-being of Canadians during the pandemic. In June 2021, the Public Health Agency of Canada released two infographics highlighting data collected. This data blog provides more detailed tables on the data that were presented in the infographics...
Measuring Bicycling Infrastructure Across Canada: Open Data
Evidence shows that the safer an individual feels on their cycling route, the more likely they are to cycle. This can be particularly true for those who are less confident cycling, and could reduce a barrier for individuals to begin cycling. Bicycling infrastructure is often built to keep riders safe, but not all...
Impacts of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Canadian Children with Cognitive, Behavioural or Emotional Disabilities
To prevent and control the spread of COVID-19, various public health measures, including province-wide or regional lockdowns, have been implemented across Canada. These measures have been key to help curb the spread of COVID-19, but at the same time they have significantly altered Canadian families’ daily life ...
Canadian Postsecondary Education Alcohol and Drug Use Survey
Problematic substance use poses a risk to the health and safety of postsecondary students across Canada. The Canadian Postsecondary Education Alcohol and Drug use Survey (CPADS) contributes to Health Canada’s substance use surveillance strategy, which provides the Government of Canada with vital information on the use of drugs and other substances by Canadians...
How has COVID-19 impacted access to STBBI-related health services, including harm reduction services, for people who use drugs or alcohol in Canada?
The COVID-19 pandemic has changed how people who use drugs or alcohol in Canada access healthcare services. To better understand how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected access to sexually transmitted and blood-borne infection (STBBI) prevention, testing and treatment services, and harm reduction services, for people who use drugs or alcohol...
Sentinel Surveillance of Substance-Related Poisonings in Canada: Spotlight on Methamphetamine
Substance-related poisonings and injuries in Canada have received increasing attention in recent years due to emerging public health threats, such as, the opioids overdose crisis, the introduction of potent synthetic cannabinoids to the illicit market and the emergence of electronic cigarettes on the Canadian market...
How has COVID-19 impacted the delivery of STBBI-related services, including harm reduction services, in Canada?
COVID-19 has changed how people in Canada access healthcare services. To better understand how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected the ability of healthcare service providers to deliver sexually transmitted and blood-borne infection (STBBI) prevention...
Alcohol use among Canadians
Alcohol is the most commonly used psychoactive substance among Canadians. Alcohol use is a leading risk factor for global disease burden, including deaths and cancer development. Alcohol use is of particular concern among youth because they are at higher risk for alcohol-related harms. In 2017, the economic burden of alcohol use in Canada was estimated to be greater than $16 billion, with $5.4 billion of that sum spent...
Radon risk: Raising awareness to encourage action
Radon exposure is the leading cause of lung cancer among non-smokers in Canada. Raising public awareness is a critical first step toward protecting Canadians from the health risks associated with long-term exposure to high radon levels. Radon exposure is the leading cause of lung cancer among non-smokers in Canada. Raising public awareness is a critical first step toward protecting Canadians from the health risks associated with long-term exposure to high radon levels...
Obesity in rural and urban Canada
Recent global trends show that the prevalence of obesity is higher and rising faster among people living in rural than those living in urban areas. Understanding differences in the distribution of obesity in rural and urban populations in Canada may assist policy-makers and local communities to target healthy weights policies at a specific geographic level...
Sentinel Surveillance of Substance-Related Poisonings in Canada: Spotlight on Opioids
Substance-related poisonings and injuries in Canada have received increasing attention in recent years, due to emerging public health threats most notably associated with the opioids...
Mental Illness in Canada
Mental illness is characterized by changes in an individual's thinking, mood, or behaviour and is usually associated with significant distress or impaired functioning in social, occupational or other activities...
Canada: Land of wildfires?
Canada is covered with 347 million hectares of forest, making up 9% of the world’s total forest area. With so many forested areas, wildfires are a serious risk for Canadians, particularly from May to September...
Dementia – including Alzheimer's disease – in Canada
Dementia is an umbrella term that describes a set of symptoms affecting brain function. It happens when cells in the brain die or important nerve connections are broken. This process is known as neurodegeneration...
Spotlight on Traumatic Brain Injuries Across the Life Course
This is the third report of the Public Health Agency of Canada’s (PHAC) Injury in Review series, providing national surveillance statistics on head injuries and traumatic brain injuries (TBI)...
Supervised Consumption Sites
Supervised consumption sites (SCS) are facilities where people can consume pre-obtained drugs under the supervision of trained staff. The following SCS data covers the period of 2017 to March 2023....
Schizophrenia in Canada
Schizophrenia is a psychotic disorder that affects about 1% of Canadians. Affecting the way a person interacts with and understands the world, key symptoms of active schizophrenia include delusions, hallucinations, disorganized speech and/or behaviour, and impaired cognitive ability...
Sentinel Surveillance of Substance Use-related Injuries and Poisonings in Canada
Substance use-related poisonings and injuries in Canada have received increasing attention in recent years, due to emerging public health threats most notably associated with the opioids overdose crisis, cannabis use, and the emergence of electronic cigarettes on the Canadian market...
Interactive Data Visualization of COVID-19 in Canada
COVID-19 (novel coronavirus) is a serious health threat, and the situation is evolving daily. The risk will vary between and within communities, but given the increasing number of cases in Canada, the risk to Canadians is considered high...
Quick Facts About Suicide in Canada
Globally, suicide is recognized as a significant public health issue (World Health Organization). In 2012, the Federal Framework for Suicide Prevention Act became legislation in Canada and led to the development of the 2016 Federal Framework for Suicide Prevention. The Framework is focused on raising awareness and reducing stigma...
Radon Action Month in Canada
November is Radon Action Month. There is no better time to start testing your home and ensuring that the air you breathe is safe for you and your family. Radon is an invisible radioactive gas that causes lung cancer. In Canada, it is the second highest cause of lung cancer, after smoking. It comes from the ground and is produced by the breakdown...
Diabetes in Canada
Diabetes is a common chronic condition that affects Canadians of all ages. It occurs when the body loses its ability to produce or properly use insulin, a hormone that controls sugar levels in the blood. There are three main types of diabetes: type 1, type 2 and gestational diabetes. If left uncontrolled, diabetes results in high blood sugar levels, which can lead to serious complications. Fortunately...
National Drowning Prevention Week
Summertime is about taking almost every indoor activity and doing it outside. It also means finding ways to stay cool. While many of us enjoy a good swim, it is an activity that requires much safety. Based on the World Health Organization’s definition, drowning is defined as a respiratory impairment resulting from being in or under a liquid...
Barbecue Brush Related Injuries
You might have noticed that barbecue (BBQ) brush injuries have received a lot of attention lately. This common household item is designed to clean BBQ grills, but sometimes their bristles can detach and remain on the grill, then transfer to food and be consumed without being noticed. As a result, BBQ brushes are now understood to be a risk to human health and safety...
Fireworks-related injuries
Fireworks and other pyrotechnic products have gained much popularity in Canada. With their impressive auditory and visual effects, it is not surprising that such products play important roles in celebrating special events. From the Inuvik Sunrise Festival in the Northwest Territories to the Canada Day celebrations occurring in many regions across Canada, such displays attract and amaze large crowds...
What is the Canadian Paediatric Surveillance Program?
The Canadian Paediatric Surveillance Program (CPSP) actively monitors rare or emerging childhood diseases and disorders in children and youth. It examines conditions that are high-risk in terms of disability and economic costs to society, despite their low frequency. Since 1996, Health Canada, the Public Health Agency of Canada and the Canadian Paediatric Society have...
Sport and Recreation-related Concussions and Other Traumatic Brain Injuries Among Canada's Children and Youth
Sports and recreational activities have many social and health benefits and are therefore an important part of the lives of many children and youth in Canada. It's also important to play smart and play safe to minimize the risk of injury. Concussions and other traumatic brain injuries (TBIs)...
Injuries and poisonings from vaping products including e-cigarettes
Vaping is the use of an electronic cigarette (e-cigarette) or other vaping device to inhale vapour produced by heating vaping liquid or 'e-juice'. Most vaping devices have a battery, mouthpiece, heating element, and a chamber to hold vaping liquid which can contain nicotine. Some people also use vaping devices to consume cannabis...
Lawn mower-related injuries
Mowing the lawn is a routine, three season outdoor task for many people in Canada. Despite safety recommendations and the availability of protective clothing and equipment, lawn mower-related injuries still happen to people of all ages. The Canadian Hospitals Injury Reporting and Prevention Program (CHIRPP) is an injury and poisoning surveillance system currently...
What is sedentary behaviour and how do we measure it?
The Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) reports on a range of indicators related to Canadians’ physical activity, sedentary behaviour and sleep habits. These indicators are organized in a framework called the Physical Activity, Sedentary behaviour and Sleep (PASS) Indicator Framework...
Heart Disease in Canada
Heart disease is a general term used to refer to several diseases of the heart and blood vessels. In Canada, heart disease is the second leading cause of death and accounted for over 51,500 deaths in 2015. Heart disease is a condition in which the heart muscle is damaged or does not function properly. Plaque (composed of fat, cholesterol, calcium and other substances) builds up...
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) in Canada
COPD is a chronic disease that is characterised by shortness of breath, cough and sputum production. The disease is progressive (i.e. it tends to get worse over time) and debilitating. It primarily affects the population age 35 years and older. Long-term exposure to lung irritants is the primary cause of COPD. In Canada and other developed...
Big Picture Mortality in Canada
Every year more than 250,000 Canadians die of various causes. Each death becomes part of a vital statistics mortality dataset. Death data in Canada is categorized using a classification system entitled International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems 10th Revision, commonly known as ICD10. The ICD10 classification system categorizes...
Bike to Work
May 19th, 2017, is Bike to Work Day in Canada! Across North America, May and June are the designated Bike to Work months. Annually, throughout spring, cities across Canada hold a Bike to Work Week or Day. For everyone who can’t wait to dust off their bikes this spring, we want to tell you about BikeMaps.org - use it to plan your routes and avoid traffic...
What is an Indicator Framework?
An indicator framework answers the call for easily digestible data. If you’re one to peruse scientific data, you may already know what an indicator framework is. For those who are new to the concept, let's break it down. An indicator is a single data element – a snapshot of the state, level or measure of something. A framework is simply the structure of "a system, concept, or text"...
Asthma in Canada
Asthma is one of the most common chronic respiratory diseases in Canada. It affects Canadians of all ages, but younger Canadians are disproportionately affected. Symptoms of asthma include shortness of breath, wheezing, coughing, and chest tightness. There is currently no cure for asthma; however, it can be well controlled by maintaining a healthy lifestyle, avoiding allergens...
Obesity in Canadian Adults: It's About More Than Just Weight
Obesity is at epidemic levels around the world in both children and adults. Although adult obesity in Canada has been relatively steady since 2004, the percentage of adults who are obese today is twice as high as it was in 1978-1979, from 13.8% to 28.2%. This is concerning since obesity is a known risk factor for chronic diseases like...
How Healthy are Canadians?
Being healthy means different things for different people. However, most of us would agree that it involves a sense of mental and physical well-being. Many factors influence our health, such as our genes, our lifestyles and our environment, to name a few. Health is a state of being but also a resource for everyday life. So, how healthy are Canadians? To find out, we examined health data...
Down Syndrome Day – March 21
Down syndrome, a chromosomal abnormality, is one of the most common congenital anomalies (or birth defects) worldwide. Most diagnoses are made by birth or within the first year after birth. Children with Down syndrome present with well-defined physical characteristics. They often experience intellectual delay and are at an increased risk for several medical conditions...
A Canadian look at the connection between childhood maltreatment and diabetes
Child abuse may hurt the body for years after it ends. Reducing child abuse, then, will not only reduce immediate pain, injury and suffering, but may also improve adults’ long-term physical health. Child maltreatment, including physical and sexual abuse and...
Cancer in Canada
Cancer is a disease that develops when abnormal cells grow and divide in an uncontrolled way, forming lumps or tumours that can invade nearby tissues or spread to other parts of the body. The Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) monitors national cancer trends using data from the Canadian Cancer Registry (CCR)...
Positive Mental Health in Canada
Positive mental health is the capacity to feel, think, and act in ways that enhance the ability to enjoy life and deal with challenges. It is a positive sense of emotional and spiritual well-being that respects the importance of culture, equity, social justice, interconnections and personal dignity. Almost two-thirds (65%) of Canadians aged 18 years and older self-rate...
Physical Activity, Sedentary Behaviour, and Sleep (PASS): A New Way of Tracking Healthy Daily Activity
We live our days on a 24 hour cycle. Most of that time is spent in intervals of physical activity, sedentary behaviour (like sitting and screen time) and sleeping. As such, the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) recognized that it needed to modernize how it monitors the physical activity levels of Canadians...
Childhood Cancer Month
The Cancer in Young People in Canada (CYP-C) program is a national childhood cancer system that was launched in 2009 to contribute to cancer control in all children living with cancer in Canada. It includes 97% of all children aged up to 14 years who have been diagnosed with cancer in Canada (Mitra D et al., 2015). For more information, please visit the program website...
World Suicide Prevention Day
Suicide is a significant public health issue. The grief and trauma associated with suicide produce long-term costs to society and devastating effects on families, friends and communities. Suicide is a complex problem involving biological, psychological, social and spiritual factors; yet is preventable by knowledge, care and compassion. If you or anyone you know needs to talk to someone...
Hospital Births in Canada
Although some births occur in homes and birthing centres, most births in Canada still take place in hospitals. Here are some interesting statistics on hospital births in 2014 in Canada (excluding Quebec), according to the Canadian Institute for Health Information’s Hospital Discharge Abstract Database (CIHI-DAD). O Canada! July had the most births (26,488) in 2014. The highest number of...
Healthy Weights in Canadian Children
Obesity means having too much body fat and can negatively affect a child's health and well-being. An obese child will likely become an obese adult. Obesity in adulthood has been linked to many conditions, such as diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure, cancer and poor emotional health. Over the last 35 years, obesity rates among Canadian children and youth aged 6-17 years have...
Mood & Anxiety Disorders in Canada
Mood and anxiety disorders are the most common types of mental illnesses, and they affect Canadians of all ages. So what’s the difference? Mood disorders are characterized by the lowering or elevation of a person’s mood and include major depressive disorder, bipolar disorder, dysthymic disorder and perinatal/postpartum depression. Anxiety disorders include excessive...
Family Violence in Canada
The Public Health Agency of Canada recognizes family violence as a public health issue, associated with increased risk of negative mental and physical health outcomes. Family violence is any form of abuse or neglect that a child or adult experiences from a family member, or from someone with whom they have an intimate relationship. It is an abuse of power by...
National Multiple Births Day (May 28)
Multiple births mean the birth of more than one baby at a time: a birth of twins, triplets, or more! As unique as these births are, they also face more challenges: higher risk of premature birth, low birth weight and neonatal death (meaning death before a child is one month old). Due to a greater risk of abnormal cognitive development and learning disabilities, multiple birth...
Mental Health Awareness Week (May 2-8)
Positive mental health is the capacity of people to feel, think, and act in ways that enhance the ability to enjoy life and deal with challenges. It is a positive sense of emotional and spiritual well-being that respects the importance of culture, equity, social justice, interconnections and personal dignity. Positive mental health can be measured through...
Sedentary Behaviour in Children and Youth: A New Health Risk
Did you know? Activities that require very little movement, that involve sitting or reclining, are called sedentary behaviours. Among children, common sedentary behaviours include sitting while watching TV, playing on the computer or iPad, or texting. Excessive time spent being sedentary is linked to poor health in children and youth, no matter how active they are...
Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month
Cancer is a disease that occurs when the body’s cells do not develop, function and reproduce normally resulting in lumps or tumours that can invade nearby tissues or spread to other parts of the body. Colorectal cancer is a malignant tumour that starts in the cells of the colon or rectum, most often in the cell walls that line them. The colon and rectum are parts of the large intestine and...
Head Injuries in Children and Youth – The Invisible Epidemic
You might have noticed that head injuries in sport have received a lot of attention lately, and this type of injury is now recognized as a public health problem. In some sports, head injuries are common and their potential short- and long-term consequences can be severe. The Minister of Health has committed to support a national strategy to raise...
Osteoporosis Awareness Month – Exposing The Bone Thief
Osteoporosis — the bone thief — is a common bone disease and with the aging Canadian population, the number of people affected is expected to increase. It occurs when the loss of bone tissue is faster than normal, causing it to become weak and break (fracture) easily. Often people are not aware they have osteo...
Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)
The Public Health Agency of Canada is working closely with provincial and territorial (P/T) partners in the development of a National Autism Surveillance System (NASS). NASS will provide estimates for ASD prevalence (existing cases) and incidence (new diagnosed cases), compare patterns regionally, nationally and internationally, and work towards identifying potential risk factors...