According to a Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada report, some Canadians are paying between double and nearly six times the average price for healthy foods, depending on what part of the country they live in.  This price discrepancy puts them at risk for heart disease and other ailments, as many Canadians find it difficult to access healthy foods at their local grocery store.
 
Entitled 'Heart and Stroke Foundation's Annual Report on Canadians' Health', the report discovered:
"        There is a wide cost variation for fruits and vegetables e.g. six apples cost $0.90 in Peterborough, Ont., but $7.64 in Rankin Inlet, Nunavut.
"        Whole-wheat pasta in Dawson City, Yukon costs $11.37, between four and six times of what it costs in Barrie, Ont. i.e. $2.
"        Communities with the highest prices charge twice as much for milk, cheese and meat, than communities with the lowest prices (the average low price being between $4 and $6 and the highest price ranging from $8 to almost $14).
 
The high cost and low availability of a variety of healthy foodstuffs means Canadians are at risk of a number of health problems, as those risk factors decrease dramatically once a person is eating a healthy diet.  Healthy foods improve the health by helping you lose weight, by stabilizing one's blood pressure, lowering cholesterol and managing blood sugar.
 
Twenty-five percent of heart disease and stroke cases, including other ailments could be prevented by eating a diet rich in fruits, vegetables, grains and lean meats and dairy products.
 
The Foundation recruited 66-volunteer shoppers across Canada and asked them to purchase a list of foods based on Health Canada's National Nutritious Food Basket, choosing items from list meant to feed a family of four for one week.
 
Shopping at a national or regional grocery chain in their community, not all of the volunteers could find a wide array of healthy foods.  For example, in one out of three grocery stores, dried beans and frozen spinach were unavailable.  One in five stores did not have unbreaded frozen fish, while only 10% of stores carried fresh chicken legs.
 
In complete contrast, unhealthy snacks like pop, chips and cookies were widely available and their prices varied little across the country.
 
Not surprisingly, a survey found that 42% of Canadians occasionally go without a particular type of food due to the cost factor.
 
As well, the survey found:
 
"        Nearly one-in-five Canadians forgo at least one type of food due to the cost.
"        Almost one-quarter of Canadians go without lean meat and poultry, while one in five Canadians forgo fruit and vegetables.
 
The survey results showed that many Canadians feel, it is the responsibility of the government to make nutritious foods more accessible, by regulating the price of nutritious foods and ensuring equal affordability across the country, including raising the income of lower-income Canadians.