Health Canada

This report on progress contributes to an integrated, whole-of-government view of activities supporting environmental sustainability and helps to make environmental decision-making more transparent and accountable to Parliament. This report details Health Canada's individual departmental actions...

Access documents on the health risks of indoor air contaminants. Learn how to reduce exposure to these contaminants in residential and non-residential spaces.

Canadians spend approximately 90% of their time indoors and are exposed to a large number of indoor air contaminants. In many cases, these indoor air contaminants are known to cause or exacerbate health effects, such as asthma, allergies, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and other...

Ozone can cause a variety of symptoms in both healthy people and people with respiratory problems, such as asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Health symptoms include: coughing, chest discomfort, reduced lung function, shortness of breath, and irritation of the eyes, nose and...

Toluene is one of a diverse, group of chemicals known as volatile organic compounds (VOCs), which can be released as a gas into indoor air at room temperatures. The health effects of toluene depend on the level to which you are exposed, for how long you are exposed, and your own personal...

Adaptation Bulletin #1/ The Urban Heat Island Effect: Causes, Health Impacts and Mitigation Strategies.

Adaptation Bulletin #2/ Communicating the Health Risks of Extreme Heat Events: Toolkit for Public Health and Emergency Management Officials.

Adaptation Bulletin - #3/ Understanding Community Resilience to Extreme Heat Through Table-top Exercises

Adaptation Bulletin - #4/ Developing Heat Alert and Response Systems in Urban and Rural Communities

Adaptation Bulletin - #5/ North American Working Group on Climate Change and Human Health

Health Canada reviewed the potential risk of liver injury with Pradaxa after receiving reports of severe liver injury from the manufacturer. The manufacturer was asked to provide all available data on Pradaxa and the risk of liver injury.

Health Canada carried out a safety review to look at the potential risk of seizures in patients taking finasteride after cases of seizures were published in the WHO Pharmaceuticals NewsletterFootnotea.

This safety review was carried out to look at new information in the scientific literature that has emerged since the completion of a previous review in 2012 about the risk of Clostridium difficile infection with proton pump inhibitor use. Clostridium difficile infection ranges from mild diarrhea...

Health Canada reviewed the potential risk of a type of skin reaction known as subacute cutaneous lupus erythematosus(SCLE) with the use of PPIs after a published article that found these drugs may contribute to the reaction.

Health Canada reviewed this issue because a published study found a link between SSRI exposure during pregnancy and an increased risk of autism in children. Autism is a developmental disability with lifelong impact. It affects a child's ability to communicate and interact with others.

After receiving two Canadian case reports involving canagliflozin, Health Canada reviewed the potential risk of PRES in patients treated with SGLT2 inhibitors who have developed DKA. SGLT2 inhibitors have been linked to an increased risk of DKA, which is a serious complication of diabetes....

The minerals stored within the bones help provide strength. Bones that have fewer minerals (less bone mineral density) are more likely to become brittle and break (fracture). A safety review was carried out by Health Canada to evaluate the risk of bone-related side effects of using SGLT2...

Ketones are a type of waste product that the body creates when it breaks down fat to use for energy. If ketones begin to build up to toxic levels in the blood (a condition known as diabetic ketoacidosis) it can lead to symptoms such as difficulties in breathing, stomach pain, nausea and vomiting,...

A safety review was done to evaluate the potential risk of acute kidney injury and the use of two SGLT2 inhibitors, Invokana (canagliflozin) or Forxiga (dapagliflozin). This issue was identified following new safety information received from the manufacturer of Invokana following the marketing of...

The European Medicines Agency completed a safety review of strontium ranelate, a drug available by prescription only in Europe at a dose of 680 mg per day and used to treat osteoporosis that is considered severe due to the high risk of fracture. Analysis demonstrated that the increased risk of...