Your postal code may influence your health, study

Tech Explorist
A new study by McMaster University suggests that your address in Canada could have a major role in diseases like cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and cancer.
The study is based on detailed data collected across Canada’s 10 provinces.
Scientists identified patterns connecting health and lifestyle factors like access to public transit, the assortment of fresh fruits of the soil in markets, the costs of famous sustenances, the accessibility and costs of cigarettes and liquor, and the promotion or deficiency in that department, of healthy foods in restaurants.
Russell de Souza, first author of the study said, “We found there are significant differences in environmental factors that may contribute to health, and that these differed between urban and rural communities, as well as when we compared eastern with western, and northern with southern communities.”
“We believe that this information shows there are factors outside of a person’s control that influence the individual’s health, and these factors likely differ depending on where they live.”
More than 2,000 on-the-ground assessments conducted in all of the provinces were collected by trained auditors between 2014 and 2016. The assessment tool was adapted from the McMaster-led Prospective Urban and Rural Epidemiological (PURE) study that simultaneously assesses multiple contextual factors within communities and has been used internationally.
De Souza said, “The rapid increase of overweight and obese Canadians and the associated consequences, including hypertension and diabetes, is a major health problem and threatens to halt the declines in cardiovascular disease deaths that Canada has experienced in the past 30 years.”
“Knowledge gaps exist regarding the impact of the built environment – or the human-made physical surroundings – on how someone develops risk factors like high blood pressure, and the variation of these built environments across Canada by region and rurality.”
Scientists found the correlation between the environmental factor trends aligned with health outcomes tracked in other studies.
De Souza said, “We also see people who live in rural environments tend to have poorer health than people who live in urban environments. This study helps us to understand what we call the ’causes of the causes’ of diseases like cardiovascular disease. For example, what are the factors that lead to the development of high blood pressure, which can later lead to a stroke or high cholesterol, which later turns into a heart attack?”
“By understanding how the built environment plays a role, we can intervene both at an individual level, as well as at a community level. It’s one thing for your doctor to tell you that you need to eat more fruits and vegetables to lower your blood pressure, but what if your grocery store prices are so high that you cannot afford them? Or if to get to your grocery store, you have to drive for 30 minutes? If five to 10 servings of fruit and/or vegetables are recommended daily, we should advocate for everyone to be able to afford and access those servings.”