Inhalant abuse

INHALANTS

One of the latest nightmares is inhalants. Although they may seem like a way to have new fun, they lead to very serious physical problems-or outright death.

1 - COMMONLY USED INHALANTS- Inhalants are common products found right in the home and are among the most popular and deadly substances kids abuse. Inhalant abuse can result in death from the very first use. About one in five kids report having used inhalants by the eighth grade.

The most common name for this is "glue sniffing," and that which is sniffed (or "huffed") is a wide variety of ordinary household products.

Here are some of them: Glues, paints, lacquers, paint and lacquer thinners and removers, nail polish remover, cleaning fluid, gasoline, kerosene, nail polish, hair sprays, spray paints, degreasers (dry-cleaning fluids), art or office supply solvents, including correction fluids, felt-tip-marker fluid, and electronic contact cleaners. Gases used in household or commercial products, including butane lighters and propane tanks, whipping cream aerosols or dispensers (whippets), and refrigerant gases. Household aerosol propellants and associated solvents in items such as spray paints, hair or deodorant sprays, and fabric protector sprays. Medical anesthetic gases, such as ether, chloroform, halothane, and nitrous oxide (laughing gas). Nitrites, such as aliphatic nitrites, including cyclohexyl nitrite, which is available to the general public; amyl nitrite, which is available only by prescription; and butyl nitrite, which is now an illegal substance.

Inhalants are breathable chemical vapors that produce psychoactive (mind-altering) effects. Although people are exposed to volatile solvents and other inhalants in the home and in the workplace, many do not think of "inhalable" substances as drugs, because most of them were never meant to be used in that way.

Young people are likely to abuse inhalants, in part, because inhalants are readily available and inexpensive. Parents should see that these substances are monitored closely, so that children do not abuse them.

Youngsters intent on experiencing trouble put the substance in a plastic bag and hold it over their heads. Then they take a deep breath-and, if all goes well, they remember to remove the plastic bag before they pass out and die of suffocation.

Unfortunately, that is a very real fact in the world of "glue sniffing." For the fast-acting fumes tend to bring unconsciousness, and the consequent lack of air brings death.

Some of the propellants in the aerosols are toxic to the heart and can cause death by changing the rhythm of the heartbeat. Only very fast and intensive medical attention can save him.

Persistent use of inhalants may cause some psychic dependence and could produce pathological changes in the liver and other important organs.

Most of the deaths from inhalants have come from the propellants in the various substances that were inhaled.

Clinical studies of long-term users of sprays and other inhalants have detailed out a wide range of permanent physical damage experienced by "glue-sniffing" substances.

Effects of inhalants include damage to the bone marrow, which can lead to anemia and leukemia; drastic weight loss; impairment of vision, memory, and ability to think clearly.

The short-term immediate effects of sniffing include inability to balance and coordinate the body, inability to think and act clearly, and possible abusive language and violent behavior.

Here is more data from the National Institute on Drug Abuse:

Nearly all abused inhalants produce effects similar to anesthetics, which act to slow down the body's functions. When inhaled in sufficient concentrations, inhalants can cause intoxicating effects that 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.

Inhaling such chemicals can produce irreversible 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 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 these:

Hearing loss - toluene (paint sprays, glues, dewaxers) and trichloroethylene (cleaning fluids, correction fluids)

Peripheral neuropathies or limb spasms - hexane (glues, gasoline) and nitrous oxide (whipping cream, gas cylinders)

Central nervous system or brain damage - toluene (paint sprays, glues, dewaxers)

Bone marrow damage - benzene (gasoline)

Liver and kidney damage - toluene-containing substances and chlorinated hydrocarbons (correction fluids, dry-cleaning fluids)

Blood oxygen depletion - organic nitrites ("poppers," "bold," and "rush") and methylene chloride (varnish removers, paint thinners)

2 - AMYL NITRITE and BUTYL NITRITE- Discovered over a hundred years ago, amyl nitrite was given to patients with angina pectoria (heart spasms). Soon it was also being given to relieve certain types of asthma attacks.

But by the late 1960s, it was also being taken as a street drug. So in 1969, the Food and Drug Administration changed it from an over-the-counter drug to a prescription drug.

Under the trade names, Aspirols or Vaporal, they are sold in drugstores in small ampoules of clear, yellowish liquid, which, when broken open, yields a sweet, fruity vapor which is inhaled.

But as they are broken open, they snap or pop; so they have been nicknamed "poppers" or "snappers."

Amyl nitrite causes a drop in blood pressure and an enlargement of the arteries, especially around the brain. It also speeds up the heart rate and produces pressure in the eyeballs. The dilation (enlargement) of the arteries produces a brief flushing sensation, a lightheadedness, and relaxation of some of the muscles.

But the side effects are nausea, vomiting, dizziness and a throbbing headache. These bad effects are intensified when nitrites are used with alcohol, cocaine, or amphetamines.

Continued usage can bring severe damage to the liver and kidneys. Also, in the process of breathing it in, sometimes some of the vapor gets into the eye. There it works to corrode the cornea, which is the clear, transparent outer layer of the eyeball.

Butyl Nitrite is, chemically, a close relative of amyl nitrite. When amyl nitrite was placed in the prescription-only category, the chemical underworld came up with butyl nitrite. It is advertised as a "room odorizer" or "liquid incense," in order to avoid the government restrictions and controls that are on amyl nitrite.

But the dangerous side effects of butyl nitrite are identical to those of amyl nitrite. The enlargement of arteries, that produces the flush, may only last one to two minutes. But quickly afterward, there follows a dizziness that can bring unconsciousness.

3 - INHALANT WARNING SIGNS- Here are twelve warning signs of inhalant drug use: Chemical smell on child or child's clothing. Correction fluid in nose, on fingers or on clothing. Markers in pockets. Red eyes. Nonsensical talk, irritability. "Drunk" appearance, slurred speech. Unusual breath odor. Decreased appetite. Frequent headaches. Sores around mouth. Lack of concentration. Low grades, school absences.