A report released by the provincial health officer shows residents in northern B.C. have the lowest life expectancy in the province, and the gap is widening.
Dr. Bonnie Henry says the province has made important progress in several areas of public health, but not all British Columbians are experiencing these improvements.
“There remain important differences in health status based on region of the province, between sexes and by age. As well, there are some measures where we are actually losing ground."
Life expectancy varies in B.C. health regions, with Vancouver Coastal leading the way at 82.4 years for men and 86.4 years for women.
The Northern Region sees the lowest average life expectancy at 77.4 years for men and 81.9 years for women. The Island Health Region ranks in the middle of the five zones at 80.2 years for men and 84.1 years for women.
Public health issues across the province include low fruit and vegetable consumption, health education in schools, and hazardous drinking behaviour, according to the report.
But there are also several positive trends across the province, including decreases in mortality from preventable causes and smoking during pregnancy. Cases of hepatitis C also continue to decrease, the report says.
“Collaborations across all levels of government, health authorities and other health partners will be key to achieving our goal of a healthier B.C." says Henry.
The report makes seven recommendations to improve the quality of life in all regions of the province. The full report, titled “Taking the Pulse of the Population: An Update on the Health of British Columbians,” tracks the progress of 36 performance measures of public health.
