Canada's smoking rate is dropping, but our heavy drinking rate is on the rise, and our obesity rate is refusing to budge, reports Statistics Canada.

In its latest Community Health Survey, the statistics agency reports that in 2011, only one in five Canadians aged 12 and older (19.9 per cent) smoked on an occasional or a daily basis. That's down from 25.9 per cent in 2001.

Smoking rates for men fell from 28.1 per cent in 2001 to 22.3 per cent in 2011, and for women, from 23.8 per cent to 17.5 per cent.

The biggest drops for both sexes occurred among teenagers. For those aged 15 to 17 the rates fell from 20.8 per cent to 9.4 per cent. Young people in this age group were three times more likely to smoke if they lived in homes where someone smoked.

For those aged 18 to 19, smoking rates dropped from 33.7 per cent to 19.1 per cent.

The Community Health Survey is an ongoing Statistics Canada survey that collects a wide range of information about the health of Canadian. The results are released yearly and this year, about 65,000 respondents took part.

The proportion of Canadians engaging in heavy drinking is up, the report also found. Heavy drinking is defined as having five or more drinks per occasion, at least once a month during the previous year. The rate rose to 19 per cent in 2011, up from 17.3 per cent in 2010.

Higher proportions of men than women reported heavy drinking in every age group, except among those aged 12 to 15, which saw no significant difference between the sexes.

The report also found that obesity rates in this country are holding steady. In 2011, 18.3 per cent of Canadians aged 18 and older -- roughly 4.6 million adults – reported a height-to-weight ratio that put them into the category of obese. This rate was virtually unchanged from 2009.

Obesity rates among men rose from 16.0 per cent in 2003 to 19.8 per cent in 2011. Among women, it rose from 14.5 per cent to 16.8 per cent.

When people who were overweight were included, 60.1 per cent of Canadian men and 44.2 per cent of women had an increased health risk because of excess weight. These rates have remained stable since 2009.

In 2011, 53.8 per cent of Canadians were at least 'moderately active' during their leisure time, up from 52.1 per cent the year before.

'Moderately active' would be equivalent to walking at least 30 minutes a day or taking an hour-long exercise class at least three times a week.

Other findings from the survey included:

  • In 2011, 56.4 per cent of males reported that they were at least moderately active while among females, the proportion was 51.3 per cent.
  • The proportion of non-smokers aged 12 and older who were regularly exposed to second-hand smoke at home declined to 5.5 per cent in 2011, from 10.6 per cent in 2003.
  • Around 40 per cent of Canadians aged 12 and older reported they consumed five or more pieces of fruit and vegetables per day. That's down for the second year in a row from the peak of 45.6 per cent in 2009.
  • Females were much more likely than males to eat five fruits and veggies a day
  • The most popular leisure-time activity was walking: 70 per cent reported walking during leisure time in the three months prior to the survey.
  • Gardening, home exercise, jogging or running, swimming, and bicycling were also popular.