Once able to boast about its high world ranking for low infant mortality, Canada has now dropped from sixth to 24th place - just above Hungary and Poland.

The death rate of infants less than one year of age - 5.1 per 1,000 live births - has been called "shockingly high" and translates into 1,881 mortalities in 2007, according to the most recent data collected by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development.

Read the entire Globe and Mail article here.