The Canadian Student Tobacco, Alcohol and Drug Survey has been providing data on past-year opioid misuse for students in Grades 7 to 12 since 2014. Its four surveys have shown that over time, heroin use has remained stable, with 0.5 to 0.8% of youth misusing this substance. Misuse of fentanyl and oxycodone also remained relatively stable, at around 1.0%. For other opioids — namely, morphine, codeine and/or Tylenol #3 (i.e., acetaminophen with codeine) — misuse rates were higher, ranging from 2.3 to 2.8%.

The BC Adolescent Health Survey also provides information on opioid misuse for students in Grades 7 to 12 in the province. Data from the 2023 survey, which included more than 38,000 youth, found that 1% reported ever using heroin, fentanyl or other opioids. The 2018 survey similarly found that 1% of youth reported ever using heroin (other opioids were not included in that survey).

For more information, see Vol. 18, No. 2 of the Children’s Mental Health Research Quarterly.