Canadian Health Measures Survey, Cycle 1 2007 - 2009: Oral Health

<p>For cycle 1 of the CHMS, directly measured indicators of health and wellness were collected on a representative sample of approximately 5,600 Canadians aged 6 to 79 years. The survey consisted of an in-home general health interview followed by a visit to a mobile examination centre (MEC). Reference laboratories and the MEC laboratory analyzed biological specimens for indicators of general health, chronic disease, infectious disease, nutritional status and environmental biomarkers.</p>
<p>The information collected will create national baseline data on the extent of such major health concerns as obesity, hypertension, cardiovascular disease, exposure to infectious diseases, and exposure to environmental contaminants. In addition, the survey will provide clues about illness and the extent to which many diseases may be undiagnosed among Canadians. The CHMS will enable us to determine relationships between health status and disease risk factors, and to explore emerging public health issues.</p>
<p>Some of the objectives of the CHMS are to:</p>
<ul>
<li>estimate the numbers of people with selected health conditions, characteristics and environmental exposures based on direct health measures;<.li>
<li>ascertain relationships among risk factors, health promotion and protection behaviours, and health status; and<.li>
<li>establish a biobank of biospecimens (urine, blood, DNA (Deoxyribonucleic acid)) from a representative sample of Canadians to be used for future research and surveillance.<.li>
</ul>