September/October 2005
Page 5

• 25% of all visits to the hospital are gastrointestinal related.
• Biventricular disease is so common in the elderly population that 60% of us have the disease by the time we reach 85.
• As much as 30% of the population has some form of gastro esophageal reflux disease.
• At minimum, 13% of Canadians suffer from irritable bowel syndrome, and other estimates have shown up to 20% incidence -- 70% of whom are women
• 180,000 Canadians have inflammatory bowel disease
• Gastrointestinal diseases and disorders are the most frequent reason for employee absenteeism, next to the common cold

Source: Canadian Society for Intestinal Research, via Inside Out On-line Sep/Oct 05.