PORTAGE LA PRAIRIE, Man. - Francophones in Manitoba, long listed as among the unhealthiest cultural groups in the province, are now bucking that trend.
A new generation appears to rejecting the poor health choices of their elders and are instead embracing healthier ways, say researchers at the University of Manitoba's Centre For Health Policy, in a new study.
Researchers looked at suicide, diabetes, prescription drug use, hospitalization frequency and mortality rate.
While older Francophones appear to still be less healthy than other cultures in the province in most categories - with higher rates of hospitalization and being more likely to take prescription drugs - younger Francophones were healthier overall comparatively.
Some of the reason for that could be the ongoing effort to provide better health care in French, said one of the researchers.
"There is a lot of effort going on in central region, across the province and across the nation to try to offer Francophone health services to Francophones where possible," Dr. Mariette Chartier said. "There are more studies that say if you can receive culturally sensitive health care that it impacts very positively on health outcomes."
