From the March 16, 2005 CBC Health & Science News, comes a report on a study that shows that more Canadians are using Chiropractic than ever before. The study by the agency “Statistics Canada” (StatsCan) also showed an increase in the usage of other non-medical forms of healthcare the study called alternative.
StatsCan conducted a health survey in 2003 and found that about 20 per cent of Canadians aged 12 and older an estimated 5.4 million people had used some type of what they called, alternative health care in the year 2002. This is in comparison to a similar study almost a decade ago that showed that only 15% of Canadians over age 17 had used some form of alternative care.
Chiropractic was clearly the highest usage of the non-medical forms of care in the study. The 2003 study showed that 11 per cent of those 12 years and older had gone to a Chiropractor in the previous year. Of the other forms of non-medical care the study showed that eight per cent had consulted a massage therapist, two per cent an acupuncturist and two per cent a homeopath or a naturopath.
According to the study those most likely to consult a non-medical practitioner were people in middle age, women, people with higher incomes, those with higher education and people living in the western provinces.
