School is well underway, so here’s a pop quiz – for you parents.
What is most commonly the first drug of abuse among children and adolescents. Alcohol? Not quite. Marijuana? Think again.
If you said “inhalants” then you get an A. There’s also a decent chance you set the curve because very few parents ever think about the risk of inhalant use by their children.
Inhalants are volatile chemicals that are rapidly absorbed into the bloodstream and which enter the central nervous system. They often produce a brief pleasurable sensation or a feeling of dizziness or intoxication, which is followed by tiredness or lethargy.
There are a number of reasons why inhalant abuse is common among kids. Inhalants are cheap, readily accessible and legal for kids to possess. The average home has up to 50 products with the potential for inhalant abuse. Kids also may use inhalants in the false belief that they are not harmful.
National surveys indicate that more than 10 percent of U.S. high school students have used inhalants for their intoxicating effects. Each year, more than 800,000 kids experiment with inhalants.
Common inhalants include glue, shoe polish, gasoline, lighter fluid, spray paints and nitrous oxide. The latter is also referred to as “whippets” and is found in a cylindrical metal bulb used as a propellant for whipped-cream makers.
Kids use a variety of terms for inhalant techniques.
Sniffing refers to breathing in a substance directly from a container or from a heated surface onto which the substance has been sprayed.
Huffing refers to inhaling a volatile substance from a saturated rag placed under the mouth and nose.
Bagging refers to inhalation of the substance from a bag placed over the nose, mouth or head.
Increasing concentration of the inhaled substance is experienced from sniffing to huffing to bagging.
Inhalant abuse is very dangerous and potentially lethal. All organ systems can be affected by either the acute or chronic abuse of inhalants. Symptoms can range from slurred speech and imbalance to nausea, vomiting, disorientation or seizures. Chronic use can result in permanent brain, heart or nerve injury. Death can result from asphyxiation, suffocation, cardiac arrhythmia or even from reckless behaviors while under the influence of the inhalant. Many inhalants are highly flammable and pose risk of explosion and fire.
Hydrocarbon abuse such as inhalation of butane, propane, solvent or toluene vapors can result in sudden death because of cardiovascular collapse. While rare, “sudden sniffing death” can occur even with first use of a hydrocarbon inhalant.
Toluene is one of the most commonly abused inhalants. It is found in a variety of household substances ranging from degreasers and spot removers to adhesives, paint thinners and automotive products. Clues about inhalant abuse can include empty solvent containers or items such as rags or bags found in the child’s room or trash can which smell of solvents. The so-called glue sniffer’s rash is a red rash around the mouth and middle of the face because of the skin-drying effects of an inhaled hydrocarbon.
It is important for parents of adolescents both to educate teens about the risks of inhalant abuse and also to be aware of the potential for inhalant abuse.
Dr. Matthew A. Clark is a board-certified physician in internal medicine and pediatrics practicing at the Ute Mountain Ute Health Center in Towaoc.
