A new poll suggests some Canadians feel their mental health has declined as the COVID-19 pandemic has continued and that the effects might be worse for women, single parents and relatively recent immigrants.
The survey by Leger and the Association for Canadian Studies shows female respondents were more likely than men to report their mental health as bad or very bad across a range of age groups.
More than one-third of unemployed respondents cited worsening mental health, with a greater percentage of women than men in this category reporting bad or very bad mental health.
Jack Jedwab, president of the Association for Canadian Studies, says mental health may worsen with new lockdowns and restrictions as people lose the outlet of visiting friends and family, which some respondents to the survey said they did over the holiday period.
The online survey of 1,523 respondents was conducted Jan. 2-3.
With files from the Canadian Press