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Emergency department (ED) visits for use of substances, especially opioids, amphetamines and cannabis, by mothers with dependent children increased almost 5% a year, in contrast to an increase of almost 2% a year among females without children, according to a large study in Canadian Medical Association Journal. These increases were largely in mothers under age 25, in whom rates grew more than four times faster than among other females.

Over the past 20 years, use of opioids, stimulants, cannabis and hallucinogens has increased in the general population in North America. The burden of substance use affects more than just the person who uses the substances.

"Growing up with a parent who has a substance use disorder is considered an adverse childhood experience, which can increase a child's risks of poor health, developmental challenges and future substance use," says Dr. Colleen Webber, an investigator at Bruyère Health Research Institute, Ottawa, Ontario, and Bruyère Health lead of OnSPARK, with co-authors. "Despite this, there is surprisingly little evidence on substance use in parents, although many studies have been conducted on the general population."

To understand whether rising substance use was also occurring in parents, researchers examined ICES data from 2008 to 2024 on all females in Ontario who were giving birth and who had at least one child age 18 or younger. They compared these birthing parents with other females who did not have children.

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