Statistics Canada reveals impact of COVID-19 on Canadians

A recent report by Statistics Canada has revealed the impact COVID-19 has had on Canadians.

The agency collected data via a new web panel online survey from more than 4,600 people in the 10 provinces between March 29 and April 3.

The survey looked at the most pressing concerns expressed by Canadians regarding the crisis, the precautions they took to reduce the risk of exposure to COVID-19, and how they changed their weekly habits as a result of the crisis.

The results showed many Canadians are anxious about their health, but more are concerned about the health of others.

More than 50 per cent of residents said they were “very or extremely” concerned about the health of someone in their household and 79 per cent were even more concerned about the health of vulnerable people.

The survey also asked Canadians what type of precautions they have taken as a result of the crisis.

Roughly nine out of 10 reported that they were following physical distancing guidelines, such as avoiding leaving the house, using social distancing when out in public, and avoiding crowds and large gatherings.

The results found 92 per cent of people are washing their hands more regularly, 70 per cent are avoiding touching their face, and 63 per cent are stocking up on essentials at grocery stores and pharmacies.

The sale of bathroom tissue was up 241 per cent compared to a similar time period last year and grocery store sales in total were up in March.

The week of March 11th had 16 per cent higher grocery sales than the busiest shopping week of the year in 2019.

Statistics Canada says the pandemic is also having a profound impact on how people are spending their time at home.

Canadians aged 15 to 49 and people aged 50 and older reported spending more time watching television or on the Internet.

Younger Canadians were also more likely than their older counterparts to report spending more time playing video games or board games, and they were more likely to report having increased their consumption of junk food and alcohol.

The safety precautions put in place to avoid the spread of the virus have caused more stress and anxiety for many Canadians.

One-third of people said they were “very or extremely” concerned about family stress from confinement.

About eight per cent of residents were also concerned about the possibility of violence in the home.