John Pike’s journey with opioids began at age 18 with a prescription for Tylenol 3s due to a toothache and progressed through various drugs, including fentanyl. A study from Unity Health reports that older adults in Ontario, particularly those over 55, are facing a significant opioid crisis, with the number of people receiving care for opioid addiction doubling between 2017 and 2024. The study highlights an increase in opioid overdose deaths among this age group, driven by factors like an aging population and shifts from pharmaceutical to street opioids, particularly fentanyl.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-09-23,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
It started with a toothache.
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It → start → toothache
John Pike, 18 at the time, was prescribed Tylenol 3s, which contain codeine.
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which → prescribe → codeine
The pills relieved the pain but something else changed inside him.
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something → relieve → him
In his 20s, Pike was working as a highrise window cleaner, a job he held for two decades, before he sought another opioid prescription, Percocet, for back pain related to his job.
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he → work → job
When his prescription was cut off, he started using methadone to avoid withdrawal symptoms and manage his pain.
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he → cut → pain
But he eventually relapsed and starting using morphine, OxyContin, heroin and finally, fentanyl.
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he → relapse → morphine
Pike, now 51, a client at the Parkdale Queen West Community Health Centre, said the decades of opioid use have ravaged his body, his relationships with his family and his housing stability.
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decades → say → family
“Definitely as you get older, it takes more of a toll on your body,” Pike said.
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Pike → get → body
“With fentanyl, it felt like it was eating me from the inside out.”
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it → feel → inside
A new study from researchers at Unity Health reports that older adults in Ontario, specifically those over 55, have been hit hard by the fentanyl/opioid drug poisoning crisis and are one of the most vulnerable age groups in the throes of addiction.
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adults → report → addiction
While Pike is just under the age group for the study, he recognizes he’ll be heading there fast.
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he → recognize → study
The researchers characterize their findings as an “overlooked and evolving crisis among older adults” that the health-care system isn’t prepared for.
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system → characterize → that
A tranquilizer in Toronto street drugs that defies traditional overdose responses is adding to the strain on hospitals.
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that → defy → hospitals
A tranquilizer in Toronto street drugs that defies traditional overdose responses is adding to the strain on hospitals.
“They are going to be left behind more and more as time goes on if we don’t react quickly,” said Tara Gomes, an epidemiologist, professor at the University of Toronto and principal investigator of the Ontario Drug Policy Research Network at Unity Health Toronto, as well as co-author of the report.
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Gomes → defy → report
Some of the notable findings are that people seeing care for opioid addiction doubled between the third quarter of 2017 and the fourth quarter of 2025, from 7,116 to 15,231 people, which researchers said is likely an underestimate.
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researchers → see → people
Opioid overdose deaths among older adults have also increased significantly, rising from 1.1 per 100,000 people in 2013 to 1.8 per 100,000 by 2024, which is in line with trends among other demographics.
What’s driving the increases is multifactorial.
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driving → increase → increases
The aging population is a major factor, but there was also rapid expansion of pharmaceutical opioids (especially OxyContin) in the mid- to late 1990s, following by a steep decline the 2010s, which may have left some people switching to street opioids.
uncertain
which → age → opioids
Finally, the toxic drug supply has played a significant part.
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supply → play → part
Over the study years, fentanyl use increased among older adults.
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use → increase → adults
By the last quarter of 2024, about 62 per cent of opioid overdose deaths in this cohort involved fentanyl, which doubled from 31 per cent in the second quarter of 2017.
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which → involve → 2017
Pharmaceutical opioids were also a significant contributor to opioid toxicity deaths among older adults, accounting for 32 per cent of deaths over the study period, and was most pronounced among adults 75 and over.
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opioids → account → adults
“There’s this history of how people got here, but then also the reality of what’s causing the harm right now, which is that potent unpredictable drug supply,” Gomes said.
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Gomes → ’ → harm
While the overprescribing of pharmaceutical opioids for various health conditions in the ‘90s and early 2000s is mentioned in the report, it doesn’t conclusively say this is the cause for the increases.
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this → mention → increases
But after fentanyl blew up around 2016, Gomes said doctors became extremely cautious about prescribing opioids, with strict guidelines and increased oversight of physicians.
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doctors → blow → physicians
“The second part of this crisis has been the rapid de-prescribing,” said Dr. Chetan Mehta, an addictions specialist in Toronto who has worked at supervised consumption sites in the city.
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who → say → city
“There is a tremendous fear about prescribing regular opiates,” he added, while also highlighting the risks of abruptly taking people off opioids without adequate supports.
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he → be → supports
Gomes is calling for closer co-ordination between long-term-care homes and Ontario’s Ministry of Long-Term Care to boost service capacity and beds in institutions that can adequately support people who use drugs, and more comprehensive training for workers in care facilities.
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who → call → facilities
She added that family members, loved ones, friends and personal support workers play an important role in paying attention to if an older adult is on a harmful trajectory with substance use.
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adult → add → use
“This is a wake-up call to the fact that there is a large number of people who have developed opioid use disorders over decades, who are now surviving this toxic drug supply, aging and have complex care needs,” Gomes said.
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Gomes → wake → needs
“And the health-care system doesn’t really understand that.”
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system → understand → that
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