Canada's Living Standards: A Pretty Good Place To Live, Eh
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"I am Canadian!" is a declaration that any good Canuck will proclaim to those who will listen. After all, we're all convinced that Canada is by far the best country in the world. And rightly so -- aside from the fact that Canada is beautiful and is made up of stellar people, we are also one-upping other countries in terms of living standards.
A recent report from the Daily Beast claimed Canada is the third best country in the world for women to live in, ranking just below Iceland and Sweden. According to Jesse Ellison from the Daily Beast, Canada is, "Good across the board... It's the day-to-day. The health care is very good, education is very strong, women are doing well economically and they're participating in local government." And compared to countries like the U.S., we're lucky to have a guaranteed paid maternity leave for new mothers.
Canada is more than just a great place for women to live -- it's a good spot to live in, period. The Economist Intelligence Unit consistently ranks Canadian cities among the most liveable in the world and three of them -- Vancouver, Toronto and Calgary -- have spots in the top five, based on a whole range of aspects including culture, health care, economic stability, education and infrastructure.
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We asked HuffPost and AOL Canada editors what they loved about life in Canada -- check out their answers and tell us what you love -- we'll include your answers in an upcoming readers' slideshow. Send us a tweet with the hashtag #lovecanada to @huffpostcanada or @HuffPostCaLiv.
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We're typically healthier too -- at least compared to our neighbours to the south. Life expectancy for Canadians is at an all-time high -- sitting at 80.9 years. Obesity is more prevalent in the States than it is here -- a third of Americans are obese, compared to a quarter of Canadians. And a report from Best Health Magazine found Canada beat the U.S. in several health indicators -- we have fewer instances of breast cancer, osteoporosis and diabetes, for instance, and we're fitter.
That's fairly impressive for a nation who's unofficial national food is french fries covered in gravy and cheese. Still, that's not to say we don't need to worry about our health or weight -- Canadians are still fatter and less healthy than we were a few generations ago.
More reasons Canada comes out on top:
- We apparently have better sex lives than those in other countries.
- According to research from Durex, we last longer in the bedroom and have more lovers than Italians.
- We have far less national debt than other countries.
- We have higher median household incomes than countries like Australia and Britain and we're more likely to own homes than the Americans, Swedes, Japanese or French.
- We breathe better than almost everyone else on Earth -- a recent study by the World Health Organization found we have the 3rd best air quality in world.
So we officially have reasons other than Tim Hortons, Rick Mercer and our phenomenal hockey prowess to be proud of being Canadian. What's your favourite thing about living in Canada?
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The Huffington Post Canada Martha Edwards First Posted: 09/29/11 04:04 PM ET Updated: 09/30/11 12:01 PM ET