Grey Matters

Excerpts from the Times Colonist

Census Highlights

• Greater Victoria has the highest proportion of very elderly people in the country – those over 80 – at 6.4 per cent of the population.
• B.C. saw a 16.2 per cent increase in the number of centenarians since 2001 – up to 610 from 525.
• Despite B.C.’s reputation as a retirement mecca, the province is actually only the fifth oldest. Saskatchewan, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and New Brunswick all have a higher proportion of seniors. Oddly, Saskatchewan also has the highest percentage of people under 15, making it the oldest and youngest province.
• The graying population means that there are more than four million Canadians over the age of 65 – that’s one in every seven people. Conversely, there are just 5.6 million Canadians under 15, and projections suggest they’ll be outnumbered by seniors by 2011.
• Compared to other countries in the G8, Canada has one of the lowest proportions of seniors: 13.7 per cent of Canadians are 65 and older compared to 20.8 per cent in Japan for the same age category.
• Sidney has more women as a percentage of the total population than any other town in Canada, followed by Saint Lambert, Que., and Yarmouth, N.S., while Rockwood, Man., Wood Buffalo, Alta., and Whistler, B.C., are the manliest towns.

. . . The top three grayest towns in Canada are on the Island – Qualicum, Sidney and Parksville. Around 4 out of every 10 people in Qualicum are older than 65, while 3 out of every 10 people in Parksville and Sidney qualify as seniors.

. . . One in seven Canadians is now a senior citizen, says the Statistics of Canada report…

. . . Women living average of 82.5 years and men 77.7 . . .

. . . Analysts say the rapidly aging population has major implications for the economy and society in general, ranging from worker shortages to rising health-care costs and increasing demands on pension systems. On a more positive note for society, it promises to creat a larger pool of volunteers, given the tendency of older people to donate their time to worthy causes.. . .

The article included many more interesting tidbits of information. Not the least of which was noting that the Baby Boomers are just now becoming seniors. The one in seven ratio will most probably increase in the future.