WASHINGTON — A total of 1.8 million U.S. youth aged 12–17 years—including about 17% of eighth graders—reported that they had initiated inhalant use within the year during the years 2002–2004.
This was according to data from the report by the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, “Characteristics of Recent Adolescent Inhalant Initiates.”
“Kids don't view inhalants as dangerous,” Dr. Nora D. Volkow, director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse said at a press conference.
They have it wrong—a single episode of “huffing” from seemingly innocuous products such as shoe polish, spray paint, or compressed air, computer keyboard cleaner can be deadly.
About 35% of the youth who had started using inhalants during the past year said they had used them for 1 day; 23% had used inhalants on 2–3 days, 14% on 6–12 days, and 19% on at least 13 days, according to the report, which was published by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.
The most commonly reported types of inhalants were glue, toluene (a solvent used in paint thinners), and shoe polish (30%); gasoline or lighter fluid (25%); whipped cream cartridges (whippets) or nitrous oxide (25%); and spray paints (23%).
Overall, these recent inhalant initiates were significantly more likely to be white, compared with the general population (70% vs. 62%), and significantly more likely to be 14–15 years old, compared with the general population (39% vs. 34%).
The chemicals in products that serve as inhalants cross the blood-brain barrier and produce a high, said Dr. Volkow.
However, the chemicals have catastrophic consequences on other parts of the body. Sudden cardiac death and suffocation or asphyxiation are the most common causes of death as a result of inhalant use.
The toxicity of the inhaled compounds can cause neurologic symptoms, as well. (See box.)
Products that are used as inhalants are widely available and unregulated, and they can become addictive. Inhalants are difficult to detect; these products don't show up on drug tests, and many children do not think of inhalants as drugs, Dr. Volkow said.
Education is the best way to prevent inhalant abuse, and education campaigns in the medical profession, as well as in the community, are the keys to addressing this problem, she emphasized.
Physicians can have an extraordinary impact on preventing inhalant abuse, because they are in a position to ask questions and educate their patients. “If the physician doesn't ask the question, he or she will never get an answer,” Dr. Volkow said in an interview.
Be vigilant about inhalant abuse, Dr. Volkow said, because studies have shown that children who have used inhalants are more likely to exhibit behavior problems and anger and to develop conduct disorder.
Inhalants also may serve as a starter. The survey data showed that 23% of recent inhalant initiates had not used cigarettes, alcohol, or marijuana prior to their first use of inhalants.
For a copy of the National Survey on Drug Use and Health report, visit www.samhsa.govwww.inhalants.orgwww.inhalantprevention.org
KATHRYN DALES, ILLUSTRATION
Telltale Signs and Symptoms of Abuse
Someone who is abusing inhalants may exhibit one or all of the following symptoms:
▸ Burning sensation on the tongue.
▸ Dazed, dizzy, or drunken-seeming appearance.
▸ Nausea and/or loss of appetite.
▸ Neurologic problems including peripheral neuropathy, loss of vision, severe cognitive impairment, and seizures.
▸ Red or runny eyes and/or nose.
▸ Signs of paint, correction fluid, or other chemical products in unusual places, such as the face or fingers.
▸ Slurred or disoriented speech.
▸ Unusual behaviors such as anxiety, irritability, anger, excitability, or restlessness with no discernable cause.
▸ Unusual odor on the breath or chemical odor on clothing.
Sources: U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission and the National Inhalant Prevention Coalition