Unhealthy Canadian foods a risk to newcomers’ health

Canada, 19th March: Immigrants coming to Canada are at a higher risk of developing serious health problems due to consumption of unhealthy Canadian foods.

And this is a cause of serious concern since it could be more damaging than other problems faced by newcomers moving to Canada. Some of the common problems faced by new immigrants wanting to live and work here include language barriers, difficulties in finding jobs, social exclusion, food security, income and proper housing.

All these factors collectively can have a dampening effect on the future health of immigrants in Canada. But the immigrant health crisis seems to be a serious threat for newcomers coming to stay in Canada.

Longer stay means risk of life-threatening ailments—According to findings of a latest study by ICES, the risk of developing serious or life-threatening diseases is directly linked to the duration of stay of new immigrants in Canada.

The longer the stay of new immigrants in Canada, the greater the risk of developing serious ailments. Some of the common ailments to be found in newcomers staying for a longer period of time could be cardiovascular disease, diabetes and hypertension.

And this could be attributed to cheaper North American junk or fast foods available in the market. Many newcomers find these unhealthy foods too alluring to resist thus putting their health at a huge risk.

Canada failing in immigrant health care—Canada seems to be lagging behind in terms of providing best health care for immigrants coming here. This becomes evident from the recent reports stating mortality rate of immigrants staying in Canada for ten years or longer is certainly up than their Canadian counterparts.

Prevention is the best policy—Prevention, as they say, is, undoubtedly, the best policy and this holds true even in case of cheaper unhealthy foods. It is high time the federal as well as various provincial governments take a cue from the falling health levels of immigrants coming to stay in Canada.

Immediate policies should be formulated for regulation of processed and fast food industry in Canada while bringing forth numerous benefits of consuming healthy and natural foods for immigrants and Canadians alike.