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| What are
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| Inhalants are ordinary
household products that are inhaled or sniffed by children to get
high. There are hundreds of household products on the market today
that can be misused as inhalants. |
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| What do they look like? |
Examples of products kids
abuse to get
high include model airplane glue, nail polish remover, cleaning fluids,
hair spray, gasoline, the propellant in aerosol whipped cream, spray
paint, fabric protector, air conditioner fluid (freon), cooking spray
and correction fluid.AbuseRepeated
use of alcohol and/or other drugs accompanied by failure to fulfill
major responsibilities related to work, family, school or other roles
and/or repeated use in situations that are physically hazardous; and/or
repeated legal problems. (Join Together)
Click the link for more |
| How are they used? |
| These products are sniffed,
snorted, bagged (fumes inhaled from a plastic bag), or "huffed"
(inhalant-soaked rag, sock, or roll of toilet paper in the mouth) to
achieve a high. Inhalants are also sniffed directly from the container. |
| What are their short-term
effects? |
| When inhaled via the nose or
mouth into the lungs in sufficient concentrations, inhalants can cause
intoxicating effects.Intoxication can last only a few minutes or several
hours if inhalants are taken repeatedly.Initially, users may feel
slightly stimulated; with successive inhalations, they may feel less
inhibited and less in control; finally, a user can lose consciousness.
Other effects include headache, muscle weakness, abdominal pain, severe
mood swings and violent behavior, numbness and tingling of the hands and
feet, nausea, hearing loss, limb spasms, fatigue, and lack of
coordination. |
| What are their long-term
effects? |
| Sniffing highly concentrated
amounts of the chemicals in solvents or aerosol sprays can directly
induce heart failure and death. This is especially common from the
abuse of
fluorocarbons and butane-type gases. High concentrations of inhalants
also can cause death from suffocation by displacing oxygen in the lungs
and then in the central nervous system so that breathing ceases. Other
irreversible effects caused by inhaling specific solvents are hearing
loss, limb spasms, central nervous system or brain damage. Serious but
potentially reversible effects include liver and kidney damage and blood
oxygen depletion. Death from inhalants usually is caused by a very high
concentration of fumes. Deliberately inhaling from an attached paper or
plastic bag or in a closed area greatly increases the chances of
suffocation. |
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