The Ontario Trillium Foundation has conducted a study on the well-being of people living in the province and while Northern Ontario racked up well in some categories, it fell short in others.
On the health side of things, the North is falling well behind when compared to the rest of the province. The region ranked lowest in overall health and mental health scores. On top of that rates of teen smoking are higher here than anywhere else in the province and many people do not have a family doctor.
The same study showed unemployment rates are high and family incomes are low when compared to the rest of the province. Northern Ontario also has the highest amount of crime that’s reported, but it’s still down from the overall Canadian average.
On the education side of things there’s more career and help programs available in the North, however the fewest amount of people with university degrees. Access to child care in the region is almost the best in the province and less people are struggling with housing costs or have high levels of stress at work.
On a positive note people in Northern Ontario have a stronger sense of belonging to their community and the highest rates of individuals helping each other. While the average daily commutes for residents is almost half of what it is elsewhere in the province, only six out of ten people work regular weekday hours, which is the lowest in Ontario.
Residents in the North also had the highest levels of physical activity and people spent more time indulging in arts culture and activities.
