Ontario’s Chief Medical Officer of Health, Dr. Arlene King, has released her 2011 annual report on how healthy Ontarians are.

The report outlined 12 key factors that measure the health status of Ontarians. The indicators look at key health issues and provide ways the Ontario government can monitor them over time.

The 12 health indicators are:

• Smoking and alcohol use during pregnancy

• Low birth weight

• Healthy child development at school entry

• Immunization coverage of school pupils

• Smoking prevalence

• Overweight and obesity

• Preventable mortality

• Compliance with low risk drinking guidelines

• Self-reported positive mental health

• The burden of infectious diseases

• Hospitalizations for falls in seniors

• Life expectancy at birth

According to King, early child development is fundamental for setting people on a healthy life trajectory.

King said, “It builds stamina…the whole issue of building resilience so people are able to manage stress and are able to avoid some of the temptations in life like tobacco and excessive alcohol.  They (health indicators) are all important and combined together will in fact improve our life trajectory.”

King added that this report is not about spending more, its about creating more value for the money already being spent