Survey suggests Canadians deluding themselves about their health

With Americans too stupid to know that they and their kids are fat, why shouldn't the Canadians join the stupid-fest?

Two thirds of the men and half of the women with heart disease have no early warning signs, according to a cardiologist. Their first symptom is a heart attack, or sudden death.

"The lucky ones make it to the hospital," said Dr. George Honos, chief of cardiology at the Centre Hospitalier de l'Universite de Montreal.

Cardiovascular disease is one of the country's leading killers. But a new survey suggests many Canadians are deluding themselves about their risk factors for heart disease.

The survey of 2,000 Canadians, conducted in December for the Heart and Stroke Foundation's annual report on Canadians' health, found the following:

- Only 31 per cent of Canadians said they are physically inactive during their leisure time (people were asked if they were active for at least half an hour, three or more times a week, yes or no). In the 2009 Canadian Community Health Survey, 48 per cent Canadians were classified as inactive;

- Eighteen per cent of Canadian adults say they are obese. According to the 2007 Canadian Health Measures Survey, which was based on direct measurements of about 5,000 Canadians, 24 per cent of Canadian adults are obese; and

- Almost 90 per cent of those surveyed rated themselves as healthy, when nine out of 10 Canadians have at least one risk factor for cardiovascular disease, such as elevated blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes and being overweight.

"What people think they're doing and what in fact they're doing are very different things," said Honos, a spokesman for the Heart and Stroke Foundation.

Why?

Because they are too stupid to know.