Table 1. Characteristics of 831 beachgoers surveyed at Woodbine Beach, Toronto, 2022, stratified by enrollment month.
AGI = acute gastrointestinal illness.
| N (%) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Characteristic | June | July | August | Total |
| Age group: | ||||
| 0–14 | 55 (20.5) | 25 (9.5) | 23 (7.9) | 103 (12.5) |
| 15–19 | 31 (11.6) | 50 (18.9) | 57 (19.7) | 138 (16.8) |
| 20–39 | 142 (53.0) | 155 (58.7) | 169 (58.3) | 466 (56.7) |
| 40+ | 40 (14.9) | 34 (12.9) | 41 (14.1) | 115 (14.0) |
| Missing | 3 | 1 | 5 | 9 |
| Gender identity: | ||||
| Woman/girl | 174 (64.7) | 154 (59.7) | 205 (70.4) | 533 (65.2) |
| Man/boy | 89 (33.1) | 99 (38.4) | 82 (28.2) | 270 (33.0) |
| Gender fluid, non-binary, or transgender | 6 (2.2) | 5 (1.9) | 4 (1.4) | 15 (1.8) |
| Missing | 2 | 7 | 4 | 13 |
| Household income (CAD$): | ||||
| <$40,000 | 44 (21.2) | 17 (16.8) | 1 (4.5) | 62 (18.7) |
| $40,000–79,999 | 39 (18.8) | 37 (36.6) | 6 (27.3) | 82 (24.8) |
| $80,000–149,999 | 72 (34.6) | 32 (31.7) | 12 (54.5) | 116 (35.0) |
| $150,000+ | 53 (25.5) | 15 (14.9) | 3 (13.6) | 71 (21.5) |
| Missing | 63 | 164 | 273 | 500 |
| Highest education completed in household: | ||||
| High school or less | 58 (22.6) | 58 (36.0) | 70 (41.2) | 186 (31.6) |
| College, trades, or apprenticeship | 49 (19.1) | 27 (16.8) | 43 (25.3) | 119 (20.2) |
| Bachelor’s degree | 64 (24.9) | 32 (19.9) | 57 (33.5) | 153 (26.0) |
| Post-graduate degree | 86 (33.5) | 44 (27.3) | 0 (0.0) | 130 (22.1) |
| Missing | 14 | 104 | 125 | 243 |
| Location of residence: | ||||
| Ontario | 249 (91.9) | 241 (90.9) | 283 (95.9) | 773 (93.0) |
| U.S. | 14 (5.2) | 12 (4.5) | 7 (2.4) | 33 (4.0) |
| Quebec | 5 (1.8) | 9 (3.4) | 2 (0.7) | 16 (1.9) |
| Other Canadian provincesa | 3 (1.2) | 3 (1.1) | 3 (1.0) | 9 (1.1) |
| Ethno-racial identity: | ||||
| White | 130 (52.2) | 135 (60.5) | 146 (59.8) | 411 (57.4) |
| South Asian | 18 (7.2) | 22 (9.9) | 21 (8.6) | 61 (8.5) |
| Southeast Asian | 9 (3.6) | 15 (6.7) | 24 (9.8) | 48 (6.7) |
| Arab or Middle Eastern | 15 (6.0) | 14 (6.3) | 18 (7.4) | 47 (6.6) |
| East Asian | 19 (7.6) | 11 (4.9) | 11 (4.5) | 41 (5.7) |
| Latin | 20 (8.0) | 9 (4.0) | 5 (2.0) | 34 (4.7) |
| Black | 13 (5.2) | 7 (3.1) | 13 (5.3) | 33 (4.6) |
| Multiple ethnicities | 16 (6.4) | 9 (4.0) | 6 (2.5) | 31 (4.3) |
| Indigenous | 9 (3.6) | 1 (0.4) | 0 (0.0) | 10 (1.4) |
| Missing | 22 | 42 | 51 | 115 |
| Baseline illness statusb: | ||||
| Respiratory illness | 8 (3.0) | 7 (2.6) | 1 (0.3) | 16 (1.9) |
| AGI | 5 (1.8) | 1 (0.4) | 1 (0.3) | 7 (0.8) |
| Skin infection | 4 (1.5) | 1 (0.4) | 1 (0.3) | 6 (0.7) |
| Ear infection | 1 (0.4) | 0 (0.0) | 0 (0.0) | 1 (0.1) |
| Eye infection | 0 (0.0) | 1 (0.4) | 0 (0.0) | 1 (0.1) |
| Baseline health conditionsb: | ||||
| Allergies | 16 (5.9) | 25 (9.4) | 30 (10.2) | 71 (8.5) |
| Chronic respiratory condition | 7 (2.6) | 8 (3.0) | 12 (4.1) | 27 (3.2) |
| Chronic gastrointestinal condition | 8 (3.0) | 6 (2.3) | 1 (0.3) | 15 (1.8) |
| Immune-compromised | 3 (1.1) | 5 (1.9) | 2 (0.7) | 10 (1.2) |
| Engaged in other recreational water activities within the past 2 weeks | 85 (31.4) | 122 (46.0) | 141 (47.8) | 348 (41.9) |
a Other provinces included Alberta (N = 5), Nova Scotia (N = 2), and British Columbia and Newfoundland and Labrador (N = 1 each).
b Multiple selections were possible for these variables.