Grey-Bruce Kids Summer 2023

Summer in Grey/Bruce means school’s out and – for many
local youth and teens – invitations to parties, events, and
other social gatherings are rolling in. There’s a chance a youth
in your life will be offered a regulated or unregulated drug at a
party or event.
This is concerning because the unregulated drug supply poses a
significant risk of overdose or poisoning due to misuse and the
possibility street drugs can be contaminated with toxic or highly
potent substances such as fentanyl.
While anyone using unregulated street drugs faces the risk of
overdose, youth who, by nature, are more curious and take more
chances may have no tolerance for these types of drugs, and a
single use could put them at risk of an overdose, brain damage
or death.
The risk is greatest for youth who lack accurate information.
For this reason, equipping youth and teens with current
information can help to safeguard them from overdose.
This article looks at what parents and caregivers can do to keep
youth safe.
UNDERSTAND THE ISSUE
Canada is facing an opioid crisis that is claiming lives daily.
Opioids are medications primarily prescribed to relieve pain.
However, they can also produce euphoria, making them
prone to harmful use. Examples of opioids include codeine,
oxycodone, hydromorphone, morphine, heroin, and fentanyl.
Opioids can be prescribed, but can also be produced and
obtained without a prescription.
While several factors have contributed to the current opioid crisis,
unregulated street drugs contaminated with fentanyl and other
opioids are causing many of the opioid-related harms and deaths.
You cannot see, smell, or taste fentanyl, so there is no way to
know if it has been added to a substance and a tiny amount can
be deadly. Since 2016, there have been more than 9,000 apparent
opioid-related deaths in Canada. In 2017, approximately 11
lives were lost each day due to opioid overdoses, and Canadian
youth aged 15 to 24 are the fastest-growing population requiring
hospitalization for opioid overdoses.
UNDERSTAND PROBLEMATIC USE
Problematic opioid use is using opioids that are not prescribed
to you or using prescribed opioids in a manner not intended or
instructed by your health care provider. It also includes using
unregulated opioids.
Canadian youth can access opioids at home through drugs
taken from a medicine cabinet, through family, friends, and
acquaintances who share pills, through prescriptions to relieve
pain, and by buying them from the unregulated market.
RECOGNIZING OPIOID OVERDOSE
Opioids slow down the part of the brain that controls breathing.
If a person takes too much of an opioid for the body to handle,
they will show signs and symptoms of an overdose. These
include soft or no breathing, snoring or gurgling sounds, blue
lips, nails, or skin, pinpoint pupils, cold and clammy skin, and
becoming unresponsive to stimulation.
Taking too much of an opioid can lead to possible brain damage
or even death.
RESPONDING TO OVERDOSE
Public Health advises parents and guardians to get a Naloxone
kit and learn how to use it, and encourage your teen to do
the same. Naloxone is a safe, fast-acting medication used to
temporarily reverse the effects of an opioid overdose. It is safe
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