Men's Sexual Orientation and Health in Canada (Report‪)‬

Several large international population-based studies with rigorous methodologies have suggested that gay and bisexual men may be at increased risk for a variety of health problems and health risk behaviours. Gay men report higher rates of respiratory problems, arthritis, intestinal problems, and migraines (1) and overall poorer levels of physical health (2) than either bisexual or heterosexual men. Gay and bisexual men report poorer mental health and higher rates of anxiety, depression, suicidality and self-harm, (3-9) while in other studies, gay men but not bisexual men report higher rates of these mental health problems, (1,10) compared to heterosexual men. Gay and bisexual men report higher levels of smoking than heterosexual men in some studies, (11-13) although the picture is mixed for bisexual men. (1,14,15) Alcohol use is an even more mixed picture, with a number of studies showing no or few statistically significant differences by sexual orientation, (3,7,16-18) and others reporting that gay men were less likely than heterosexual men to report alcohol abuse. (5,11) However, when looking at individuals who do drink, two studies found that gay and bisexual men were more likely to drink heavily, (1,11) gay men were more likely to report drunkenness, (16) and bisexual men were more likely than heterosexual men to report alcohol-related social consequences. (18) Gay and bisexual men also reported more sexual partners, (19,20) and higher rates of STD diagnoses than heterosexual men. (21,22) Until recently, no population-based data have been available to determine whether these types of health disparities exist for gay and bisexual men in Canada. In the current study, we have conducted a detailed analysis of the data available from the Canadian Community Health Survey (CCHS, 2003)--which for the first time included a question about sexual orientation in its 2003 data collection (Cycle 2.1)--to determine whether health status and health risk behaviours of Canadian men vary based on sexual orientation identity.