C. Healthy Living · Healthy Living: Choices, Connections and Well-BeingBigger Than One Person: Addictions as Public Issues, Locally, Nationally and Internationally
C3.3 1.5About 70 minutes
Learning goals- I can identify public issues related to addictions to alcohol, drugs, gambling and tobacco.
- I can analyse the impacts of these issues on individuals, families and communities.
- I can explain connections between local, national and international impacts.
- I can evaluate how communities and governments respond, and how I could take part.
Words to know
public issue
A problem that affects many people and communities, so it is discussed and acted on publicly (by governments, schools, health agencies).
public health
Efforts to protect and improve the health of whole populations, not just individuals.
harm reduction
Practical approaches that reduce the harms of substance use (e.g. naloxone kits) without requiring that people stop first.
regulation
Rules set by governments to control how products are sold and advertised.
trafficking
Illegally making, moving or selling drugs.
stigma
Negative attitudes and labels that make people feel ashamed and less likely to seek help.
A note before you start
This lesson is about substance use and addictions. It gives facts, not judgments, and it does not describe how to use any substance. If substance use affects you or someone in your family, you are not alone and it is not your fault. You can talk to a trusted adult, call ConnexOntario (1-866-531-2600, free, confidential, 24/7, for substance use, gambling and mental health), or reach out to Kids Help Phone (call 1-800-668-6868 or text CONNECT to 686868, 24/7, free and confidential) or the 9-8-8 Suicide Crisis Helpline (call or text 9-8-8, 24/7). In an emergency, call 911.
From personal choice to public issue
Addiction affects individuals, but it is also a public issue: it shapes hospitals, roads, schools, families, laws and even international trade. That's why addictions are debated in city councils, Parliament and the United Nations.
The Grade 10 curriculum asks you to identify public issues related to various addictions (e.g., alcohol, drugs, gambling, tobacco) and analyse their impacts and the connections between these impacts locally, nationally, and internationally (C3.3).
Remember from Grade 9 and the last lessons
In Grade 9 you studied social influences on substance use and addictive behaviours. In this unit you've looked at the effects on a teen's health and the skills to respond. Now zoom out: what happens to communities and countries?
Four public issues to know
1. Alcohol: one of the most commonly used substances in Canada. Public issues include impaired driving, injuries and violence, health care costs and the cancer link. Responses: legal age (19 in Ontario), impaired driving laws, zero tolerance for drivers 21 and under, and Canada's 2023 Guidance on Alcohol and Health.
2. Drugs, including the opioid crisis: an unregulated drug supply contaminated with fentanyl and other powerful substances has caused thousands of deaths a year across Canada. Impacts: grieving families, overwhelmed emergency services, homelessness and stigma. Connections: drugs and the chemicals used to make them move through international supply chains. Responses: naloxone programs, treatment, the Good Samaritan Drug Overdose Act, policing of trafficking, and international cooperation.
3. Gambling: Ontario opened a regulated online gambling market in 2022, and betting ads became common during sports broadcasts. Concerns grew about ads reaching young people, and in 2024 Ontario's regulator banned the use of athletes, active or retired, in online betting ads (except in messages promoting responsible gambling). Online gambling also crosses borders: some unregulated sites operate from other countries.
4. Tobacco and vaping: tobacco is a leading cause of preventable death in Canada. Responses include high taxes, plain packaging (2019), bans on smoking and vaping on school property and in many public places, and an international treaty, the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control. Youth vaping has become a newer public concern, leading to limits on flavours and nicotine strength.
Stigma is a public issue too
Calling people "addicts" or "junkies" makes them feel ashamed and less likely to seek help. Person-first language ("a person who uses drugs", "a person with a substance use disorder") treats addiction as a health issue and supports recovery.
Worked exampleLet's analyse local, national and international connections
Choose the public issue of online sports betting and analyse its impacts at all three levels.
- Local: a student loses money betting on a friend's phone; a family faces debt and conflict; a school deals with betting talk in class; local counselling services see more young clients.
- National/provincial: governments earn revenue from regulated gambling but also pay for treatment; Ontario sets advertising rules (e.g. no athletes, active or retired, in betting ads) and legal age (19 for online betting).
- International: unregulated sites can operate from other countries and may not follow Ontario's protections; sports leagues and betting companies operate globally.
- Connection: national rules shape what ads people see locally; international sites can get around local protections.
Gambling is a public issue because its impacts and solutions stretch from your phone to international markets.
Worked exampleLet's evaluate a public response
Evaluate Canada's plain packaging law for tobacco (2019), which removed logos and colours from cigarette packages.
- Goal: make tobacco products less attractive, especially to young people, and make health warnings stand out.
- Strengths: targets marketing, which influences youth; cheap to enforce; part of a wider strategy (taxes, education, smoke-free spaces).
- Limits: doesn't address vaping products in the same way; people already addicted need treatment, not just less attractive packages.
- Conclusion: most effective as one part of a combined strategy.
Good evaluations ask: What's the goal? What are the strengths and limits? How does it fit with other responses?
Hands-on activityPublic issue brief
You need: reliable sources (Health Canada, Public Health Ontario, CAMH, the Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction, news from established outlets).
- Choose one issue: impaired driving, youth vaping, the opioid crisis, or sports betting ads.
- Make a three-column chart: Local / National / International impacts (at least two each).
- Describe one response already in place and evaluate it (strength + limit).
- Propose one action you or your school could take (an awareness campaign, a letter to your MPP, a student wellness event).
What to look for: specific, sourced impacts at each level; a balanced evaluation; a realistic action; person-first language.
Your turn
1What makes addiction a public issue, not just a personal one?
It affects many people and communities (families, health care, roads, schools, the economy) and requires public action (laws, programs, services).
2Give one local, one national and one international impact of the opioid crisis.
Local: families grieving, overwhelmed emergency services or shelters. National: thousands of deaths a year across Canada; health care costs. International: drugs and the chemicals used to make them travel through international supply chains.
3Name three ways governments respond to tobacco use.
Any three: high taxes, plain packaging, smoke-free and vape-free spaces (including school property), legal age, health warnings, the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control.
4What change did Ontario's gambling regulator make to betting ads in 2024?
It banned the use of athletes (active or retired) in online betting ads (to reduce appeal to young people).
5What is harm reduction? Give one example.
Approaches that reduce harms without requiring people to stop first. Example: free naloxone kits.
6Why is person-first language important?
It reduces stigma and treats addiction as a health issue, so people are more likely to seek help.
More practice: warm-up
1Name the four addictions the curriculum lists as examples.
Alcohol, drugs, gambling, tobacco.
2What is the WHO's international tobacco treaty called?
The Framework Convention on Tobacco Control.
3When did Canada introduce plain packaging for tobacco?
4Is vaping allowed on Ontario school property?
5Rewrite with person-first language: "an alcoholic".
"A person with an alcohol use disorder" (or "a person who has a problem with alcohol").
More practice: on your own
1Explain how one impaired driving crash creates impacts beyond the driver.
It can injure or kill others; involves paramedics, police, hospitals and courts; causes grief, caregiving and lost income for families; and leads to community costs and calls for stricter laws.
2Why might a regulated gambling market still raise public concerns?
More legal options and heavy advertising can normalize gambling and reach young people; more people may develop gambling problems, raising treatment needs.
3How do international connections make the opioid crisis harder to solve locally?
Drugs and the chemicals used to make them are produced and moved across borders, so local efforts alone can't control the supply; it takes cooperation between countries.
4Give one strength and one limit of raising alcohol taxes as a public response.
Strength: higher prices lower consumption, especially among young people. Limit: doesn't help people already dependent; may be unpopular; some people may buy from illegal sources.
5How can stigma make a public issue worse?
People hide their problems and avoid seeking help; communities may oppose services; families suffer in silence, so harms grow.
Challenge
1Compare how Canada responds to tobacco and to cannabis. What similarities and differences do you see?
Similar: legal age (19 in Ontario), limits on where they can be used, packaging and advertising restrictions, health warnings, public education. Different: non-medical cannabis was legalized in 2018 partly to take sales away from the illegal market and regulate products; tobacco has been legal for a long time with a goal of reducing use. Both use a public health approach.
2Analyse youth vaping as a public issue at all three levels and suggest a response for each level.
Local: vaping in school washrooms, nicotine addiction among students; response: school education and support to quit. National: limits on nicotine strength and flavours; response: enforcement of sales to minors. International: global companies market products and sell online; response: international cooperation and online sales enforcement.
3Write a 4-sentence letter to your MPP about one addiction-related public issue that includes impacts and a specific request.
Example: "I am a Grade 10 student in Sudbury, writing about sports betting ads. Many students see these ads during games, and some of my peers have started betting illegally on friends' accounts. Problem gambling can lead to debt, stress and family conflict. I ask you to support further limits on betting ads during broadcasts that young people watch." (specific, respectful, evidence-based)
Quiz
1. Which best describes a public issue?
2. The WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control is an example of a response at the...
3. Which is a harm reduction measure?
4. In 2024, Ontario's gambling regulator banned...
5. Which phrase uses person-first language?
6. How does the opioid crisis connect to the international level?
About this content: This lesson covers a sensitive topic, so it opens with a short note and helplines, and has no humour block. Read it with your teen if you can, and let them know they can come to you with questions without getting in trouble.
Big idea: C3.3: identify public issues related to various addictions (e.g., alcohol, drugs, gambling, tobacco) and analyse their impacts and the connections between these impacts locally, nationally, and internationally. Critical thinking (Living Skill 1.5) is central.
How to help at home: discuss a current news story about vaping, betting ads or the opioid crisis together; ask your teen what they see in their own community. Model person-first language.
Common difficulties: seeing addiction only as a personal failing; struggling to connect local and international levels (the levels diagram helps).
Facts used: Ontario's regulated online gambling market (2022) and the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario's ban on athletes, active or retired, in online betting ads (in effect February 2024); Canada's plain and standardized tobacco packaging (2019); WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control; Smoke-Free Ontario Act (no smoking or vaping on school property); non-medical cannabis legalization in Canada (2018). No specific death or cost totals are given because figures change each year; see the Public Health Agency of Canada for current data.