A third of Canadians would break up with a person with bad breath or improper table manners.
Vancouver, BC [February 12, 2024] – The proportion of Canadians who would call off a relationship if they encounter two specific setbacks has increased over the past two years, a new Research Co. poll has found.
In the online survey of a representative national sample, 33% of Canadians say they would stop dating or going out with a person because of how they eat, up six points since a similar Research Co. poll conducted in January 2022.
“More than a third of women (35%) would call off a relationship with a partner who displayed bad manners at the dinner table,” says Mario Canseco, President of Research Co. “The issue is a deal-breaker for 37% of British Columbians and 36% of Albertans.”
Canadians of Indigenous descent are more likely to say they would stop dating or going out with a person because of how they eat (36%) than their counterparts whose origins are European (32%), East Asian (29%) and South Asian (24%).
One third of Canadians (33%, +5) would call off a relationship with a person who had bad breath—a proportion that rises to 37% in Ontario.
Canadians who voted for the Conservative Party or the New Democratic Party (NDP) in the 2021 federal election are more likely to regard bad breath as a relationship deal-braker (36% and 37% respectively) than those who cast ballots for the Liberal Party (31%).
Fewer Canadians would stop dating or going out with a person because they have a different diet (13%, +4) or because they eat animal products (11%, +3).
One-in-ten residents of Alberta (10%) and Atlantic Canada (also 10%) say they have already broken up with someone because of dietary differences.
Methodology: Results are based on an online study conducted from January 29 to January 31, 2024, among 1,000 adults in Canada. The data has been statistically weighted according to Canadian census figures for age, gender and region. The margin of error—which measures sample variability—is +/- 3.1 percentage points, nineteen times out of twenty.
Find our data tables here and download the press release here.
For more information on this poll, please contact:
Mario Canseco, President, Research Co.
778.929.0490
[e] mario.canseco@researchco.ca