Web Perspectives Finds Most Canadian Respondents Resolved to go on a Health Kick This New Year

LONDON, March 10, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Web Perspectives, a leading online surveys website, has revealed that respondents of its poll are resolved to making 2011 a healthier year than 2010. The answers to a recent survey asking the question, "What are your New Year's resolutions?" showed that a good proportion of Canadian respondents (18%) wanted to save money. However, many more are determined to get fit and healthy: 22% will try to lose weight, 10% are determined to stop smoking and 21% are set on doing more exercise. Only 7% had a New Year's resolutions that didn't fit any of these categories.

The paid online surveys' (http://www.webperspectives.ca/eng/join/) revelation that 10% of respondents want to give up smoking reflects the steady decline in the habit's popularity, particularly among teens and young people. In 2009, the Canadian Tobacco Use Monitoring Survey showed that 18% of 15-year-olds and older either smoked every day or occasionally, down from 25% in 1999. However, the decline in the rate of smoking has leveled off in recent years, and the use of tobacco is still the highest preventable cause of disease and death here, killing 37,000 people every year.

Whilst smoking is still the greatest threat to public health, lack of exercise and poor eating habits are behind a growing number of health problems in Canada. The Canadian Health Measures Survey (CHMS) measured fitness using a range of physical tests. It found that between 1981 and 2009, fitness levels of children, youth and adults declined significantly, corresponding to a dramatic increase in obesity and related chronic diseases such as diabetes, osteoporosis and heart ailments. This reflects the increased determination to prevent health-related issues indicated in the online poll (http://www.webperspectives.ca/eng/poll/).

In an effort to make national physical activity standards more achievable, the Canadian Society of Exercise Physiology has just revised its guidelines on the minimum amount of physical activity required for good health. It suggested that adults could revise their 'active time' to 150 minutes per week rather than 60 minutes per day while children are being told to reduce their activity to one hour rather than one and a half hours per day. The new recommendations more closely match those of other countries and it is hoped that setting more realistic goals will motivate more Canadians to improve their level of health and fitness.

According to the results of the online survey ( http://www.webperspectives.ca/eng/about/), around one fifth of all participants (21%) are determined to increase the amount of exercise they do in 2011.

About Web Perspectives:

Web Perspectives (http://www.webperspectives.ca/eng/about/) is an online market research platform where members have the opportunity to earn rewards by participating in online surveys. Through various partnerships with popular retailers such as Chapters Indigo, Paypal and Air Miles, Web Perspectives provides its members with attractive rewards in exchange for completing online paid surveys.

The survey topics are tailored to member's preferences and can include anything from green issues to healthy living, fast food to slow trains, politicians to favourite film.

Made up of more than 200 000 thousand members in Canada, the Web perspectives community provides market research companies with access to untapped opinions from a large database of consumers.

    
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