Common chronic diseases in women compared to men

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Organization: Public Health Agency of Canada

Type: Infographic

Date published: 2021-12-21

ISBN: 978-0-660-40708-1

Cat: HP35-151/2-2021E-PDF

Pub.: 210406

Chronic disease incidence among Canadians aged 65 years and older

Compared to men the same age, women aged 65+ are more likely to be newly diagnosed with these chronic diseases:

Table 1: Crude incidence rates per 100,000 persons aged 65 years and older
Chronic disease Women Men
Osteoarthritis 2,687.2 1,950.6
Osteoporosis 2,151.1 726.5
Dementia 1,488.7 1,192.5
Asthma 446.2 355.8
Rheumatoid arthritis 186.7 121.9

Source: Public Health Agency of Canada, using Canadian Chronic Disease Surveillance System data files contributed by provinces and territories, August 2019 (data from fiscal year 2016–2017). This infographic was developed by the Public Health Agency of Canada. No endorsement by the provinces or territories should be inferred.

A number of factors may influence the differences in chronic diseases newly diagnosed in women and men. Age also plays an important role since these differences evolve with older age.Footnote 1,Footnote 2 In general, these factors include:

The impact of chronic diseases and conditions can be reduced through policies and programs that:

Learn more about chronic diseases and aging in Canada:

To learn more about chronic disease and aging, visit: Aging and Chronic Diseases: A Profile of Canadian seniors.

Chronic diseases share common risk factors. Learn more: Chronic Disease Risk Factors.

Explore the latest data: Canadian Chronic Disease Surveillance System-Public Health Infobase

COVID-19 has had unprecedented consequences for Canada's senior population. The Public Health Agency of Canada is using multiple data sources to examine the impact of COVID-19 and chronic diseases on seniors.

References

Footnote 1

Crimmins EM, Kim JK, Solé-Auró A. Gender differences in health: results from SHARE, ELSA and HRS. Eur J Public Health. 2011 Feb;21(1):81-91. doi: 10.1093/eurpub/ckq022.

Return to footnote 1 referrer

Footnote 2

Gordon EH, Hubbard RE. Do sex differences in chronic disease underpin the sex-frailty paradox? Mech Ageing Dev. 2019 Apr;179:44-50. doi: 10.1016/j.mad.2019.02.004.

Return to footnote 2 referrer

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