Mr. Speaker, February is heart and stroke month. The Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada report card for 2005 issues a wake-up call for all Canadians.
Cardiovascular disease accounts for the death of more Canadians than any other disease. In fact, this year over 80,000 Canadians will die. Thirty-five per cent of all male deaths in Canada are due to heart diseases. For women the toll is even higher. Thirty-eight per cent of all female deaths in Canada will be due to cardiovascular disease this year.
Most of us know someone, family or friend, who has experienced firsthand the devastation of heart disease or stroke. One in four, or approximately eight million Canadians, have some form of heart or blood vessel disease or are at risk of a stroke.
The Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada urges all Canadians to make a concentrated effort to live a healthy lifestyle and reduce those sobering statistics.