Chapter 5: Young First Nations Children in Canada⁽¹⁰⁵⁾

Last year’s report, The Well-Being of Canada’s Young Children: Government of Canada Report 2002, provided a profile of young Aboriginal children using the most current data at that time. There continues to be a lack of comparable national data for young Aboriginal children as a whole (including First Nations, Métis, Inuit and other groups). As a result, this chapter is focusing specifically on the perinatal(106) health of First Nations children living on reserve, providing the most recent information and research from the year 2000. Future reports will continue to enhance our understanding of the situation of all young Aboriginal children, drawing on new data as they become available. For example, data from the recently released children’s component of the second Aboriginal Peoples Survey will provide insight into the health and well-being of young Aboriginal children.

The First Nations Population is Younger

Canada’s First Nations population has proportionally more young people than the overall Canadian population. In 1999, 12.4% of First Nations people were under 4 years of age, compared with 6.6% for the general population. While the proportion of young First Nation’s children has declined slightly between 1979 and 1999 (12.9% to 12.4% respectively)(107) , the population distribution for First Nations people continues to be substantially younger than is seen in the general population in Canada.

Consistent with the decreasing birth rate of the general population, the birth rate of First Nations people has continued to show a declining trend, from 30.1 births per 1,000 population in 1987 to 25 births per 1,000 in 2000(108). Despite this decline, the birth rate in First Nations communities is still more than twice that of the general population, at 10.7 births per 1,000 in 2000(109). Other indigenous populations in the United States and Australia have birth rates that are comparable to the Canadian First Nations population(110).

First Nations Women are Having Children at a Young Age

In 2000, First Nations women tended to have their children at younger ages compared to the general Canadian population. The largest proportion (33%) of births were to mothers in their early twenties, 20 to 24 years of age. Less than 1% of births were attributed to very young mothers (10–14 years of age) while fewer than 10% of mothers 35 to 49 years of agehad babies. Almost 20% of First Nations births were to teenaged mothers from 15 to 19 years of age. By comparison, the proportion of mothers of this same age group in the general population is less than 6%(111). The birth patterns for First Nations people in Canada are consistent with the patterns found in indigenous groups in the United States and Australia(112).

Defining Low and High Birth Weight

Low birth weight is defined as the number of births under 2,500 grams, while high birth weight is defined as equal to or greater than 4,000 grams. Low birth weight has been implicated in contributing to increased risk of dying in the first year of life, developmental disabilities, and disease. High birth weight may increase maternal and infant risk for perinatal complications and adverse outcomes such as birth injuries.

More Young First Nations Children Are Born at a High Birth Weight

Increased health risks are associated with both very low and very high birth weights. The proportion of low birth weight babies in the First Nations population is 5.3%, which is slightly lower than the rate of 6% found in the general population. However, a significant proportion (21%) of mothers in the First Nations population had high birth weight babies, as compared to 13% in the general population. Although mean birth weights for infants in developed countries have been increasing(113), the differences between the proportion of babies over 4,000 grams in the First Nations population and the general population remains significant.

Young First Nations Children Experience High Rates of Mortality

The infant mortality rate, which refers to the rate of children who die within the first year of life (excluding still births), has been steadily decreasing among First Nations people since 1979, when it peaked at 27.6 deaths per 1,000 live births. In 2000, the infant mortality rate in the First Nations population was 6.2 per 1,000 live births.

Despite the steady decline, the infant mortality rate for First Nations people remains higher than that found in the general population (5.4 per 1000 live births)(114). The rate for First Nations infants is consistent with the rate found among the lowest income groups in urban Canada, where there is a 1.6 times greater risk of infant death compared to high income groups(115).