Health Reports

A Canadian peer-reviewed journal of population health and health services research

October 2021

Mortality among First Nations people, 2006 to 2016

by Jungwee Park

It has been reported that Indigenous health in Canada is fundamentally linked to the historic and ongoing processes of colonization. The impact of colonization has been internationally identified as a unique and fundamental social determinant of Indigenous health linked to all other health inequities of Indigenous people. Also, the process of colonization has resulted in ongoing and entrenched racism against Indigenous peoples, which significantly affects their health and well-being, cutting across the social determinants of health and impacting access to education, housing, food security and employment, and permeating societal systems and institutions, including the health care, child welfare and criminal justice systems. In addition, social determinants of health predispose Indigenous peoples to a number of ill-health behaviours that in turn affect health outcomes: smoking, which is related to cardiovascular disease and lung cancer and lack of exercise and poor diet, which are associated with type II diabetes. An Ontario study reported a promising result on alcohol consumption: First Nations living on reserve are more likely to abstain from alcohol. However, the prevalence of excessive alcohol intake and abuse is also higher, which is related to increases in mortality. Furthermore, First Nation adults, in particular men (both on and off reserve), are more likely to combine heavy drinking and smoking than are non-Aboriginal adults, substantially increasing their risk for cancers of the mouth and throat.

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Hypertension associated with hearing health problems among Canadian adults aged 19 to 79 years

by Pamela L. Ramage-Morin, Rex Banks, Dany Pineault, Maha Atrach, and Heather Gilmour

Hearing loss is one of the leading causes of disability globally. By 2050, an estimated 2.5 billion people will be living with some degree of hearing loss, which can impact many aspects of life, such as social isolation, cognition, employment, mental health and interpersonal relationships. This increase is driven by factors such as increasing longevity; aging populations; occupational and recreational noise exposure; chronic conditions; environmental factors; and ototoxic substances, including some medications. Tinnitus—the perception of noise that is not generated by an external source—is a potentially debilitating symptom that is closely associated with otological conditions, including hearing loss. In Canada, an estimated 60% of adults have hearing health problems—defined as hearing loss (24%), tinnitus (22%) or both conditions (15%).

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