Canadians are getting old: StatsCan

By , Postmedia Network

First posted: | Updated:

The average Canadian is middle-aged, the elderly population is increasing rapidly and there are fewer young people in the country -- all of which is going to have a huge impact on how this country works, says a Queen's University professor.

According to Statistics Canada numbers released Wednesday, the median Canadian age is 39.9, up 0.2 years from last year. The percentage of Canadians over 65 jumped 0.3% to reach 14.4%, while those under 15 decreased to 16.4% of the population. What's more, the 65-plus population is only going to get bigger, said StatsCan.

Keith Banting, a professor of policy studies at Queen's University who recently took part in an international conference aging populations, said there are many complex reasons for the incoming grey tsunami, including that baby boomers are getting older, seniors are living longer and people are having fewer babies.

But whatever the reasons, the effects will be felt all over.

"A whole range of issues are going to be affected by this. Do we have the right mix of health-care professionals? Do we have the right kind of accommodation? Do we have the right kind of cityscapes? Are cities age friendly? This is an issue that's going to perm the country as a whole," he said.

Countries like Japan have been struggling with this for years, Banting said, but Canadian policymakers are just now starting to take note.

"We thought the pressures on health care were tough before, but it's going to increase," he said.

Atlantic Canadians are the oldest people in the country, while the territories, especially Nunavut, have a large youth population.

Newfoundland and Labrador's rapidly aging population took the top spot, followed by New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and P.E.I.

Alberta boasted the youngest median age of all the provinces, followed by Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, B.C. and Quebec.

"You can see interprovincial migration in those numbers," said Banting, noting the tendency of Atlantic Canadians to go west in search of jobs.

To deal with the shift, he said provinces need to not only adopt policies to take care of elderly people, but also adopt polices that encourage young people to remain in their home provinces to start families, and policies that encourage immigration.

Meanwhile, the territories mostly bucked the trend. The median age in the Yukon is 39.2, but the other two territories have the youngest populations in the country. The Northwest Territories' median age is 31.8, and the median age in Nunavut is 24.8. Almost a third of the population there is under 15.

That's a double-edged sword, said Bennett, because while it means people are having more children, it also means they aren't living as long.

"That refers to all the major social and health problems the territories have faced for a long time," he said.

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