The Saskatoon Health Region released a health survey earlier this week targeting children in Grades 5 to 8 and the report shows those living in lower-income urban neighbourhoods are less active, more likely to try smoking and have a greater likelihood of experiencing mental health problems.
Dr. Cory Neudorf is the chief medical officer for the health region.
He says that the percentage of children that are Aboriginal living in lower income neighbourhoods in Saskatoon can range anywhere from 40 to 75 per cent and there can be any number of reasons for the lower scores when compared to more affluent areas.
“Where there’s less education, higher rates of unemployment and higher rates of single parent families and more social isolation sometimes…and with First Nations and Métis populations still high rates of more institutionalized racism and discrimination.”
Neudorf says overall the survey results are better than those taken in 2005, the last time the health region did a similar study, but there is still substantial room for improvement.