Inhalants Abuse and Addiction | Dangers and Facts

What Are the Patterns of Inhalant Abuse?

Inhalants - particularly volatile solvents, gases, and aerosols - are often among the first drugs that young children use. One national survey indicates that about 3.0 percent of U.S. children have tried inhalants by the time they reach fourth grade. Inhalant abuse can become chronic and extend into adulthood.

Generally, inhalant abusers will abuse any available substance. However, effects produced by individual inhalants vary, and some individuals will go out of their way to obtain their favorite inhalant. For example, in certain parts of the country, "Texas shoe-shine," a shoe-shining spray containing the chemical toluene, is a local favorite. Silver and gold spray paints, which contain more toluene than other spray colors, also are popular inhalants.

Data from national and State surveys suggest inhalant abuse reaches its peak at some point during the seventh through ninth grades. In the Monitoring the Future (MTF) study, an annual NIDA-supported survey of the Nation's secondary school students, 8th-graders also regularly report the highest rate of current, past year, and lifetime inhalant abuse; 10th- and 12th-graders report less abuse.

The Short and Long-term Effects of Inhalant Use

Although the chemical substances found in inhalants may produce various pharmacological effects, most inhalants produce a rapid high that resembles alcohol intoxication with initial excitation, then drowsiness, disinhibition, lightheadedness, and agitation. If sufficient amounts are inhaled, nearly all solvents and gases produce anesthesia, a loss of sensation, and even unconsciousness.

The chemicals found in solvents, aerosol sprays, and gases can produce a variety of additional effects during or shortly after use. These effects are related to inhalant intoxication and may include belligerence, apathy, impaired judgment, and impaired functioning in work or social situations. Dizziness, drowsiness, slurred speech, lethargy, depressed reflexes, general muscle weakness, and stupor are other possible effects. For example, research shows that toluene can produce headache, euphoria, giddy feelings, and inability to coordinate movements. Exposure to high doses can cause confusion and delirium. Nausea and vomiting are other common side effects.

Inhaled nitrites dilate blood vessels, increase heart rate, and produce a sensation of heat and excitement that can last for several minutes. Other effects can include flush, dizziness, and headache. Unlike other inhalants, which are abused mainly for their intoxicating effects, nitrites are abused primarily because they are believed to enhance sexual pleasure and performance.

A strong need to continue using inhalants has been reported among many individuals, particularly those who abuse inhalants for prolonged periods over many days. Compulsive use and a mild withdrawal syndrome can occur with long-term inhalant abuse. Additional symptoms exhibited by long-term inhalant abusers include weight loss, muscle weakness, disorientation, inattentiveness, lack of coordination, irritability, and depression.

Recognizing Inhalant Abuse

Early identification and intervention are the best ways to stop inhlants abuse before it causes serious health consequences. Parents, educators, family physicians and other health care pratitioners should be alert to the following signs of a serious inhalant abuse problems:

• - Chemical odors on breath or clothing
• - Hidden empty spray paint or solvent containers and chemical-soaked rags or clothing
• - Drunk or disoriented apperance
• - Slurred speech
• - Nausea or loss of appetite
• - Inattentiveness
• - Lack of coordination
• - Irritability
• - Depression

Inhalant Consumption

Inhalants can be breathed in through the nose or the mouth in a variety of ways, such as:

• - "Sniffing" or "snorting" fumes from containers
• - Spraying aerosols directly into the nose or mouth
• - "Bagging"
• - Sniffing, inhaling fumes from substances sprayed or deposited inside a plastic or paper bag
• - "Huffing" from an inhalant-soaked rag stuffed in the mouth
• - Inhaling from balloons filled with nitrous oxide.

Inhaled chemicals are rapidly absorbed through the lungs into the bloodstream and quickly distributed to the brain and other organs. Within seconds of inhalation, the user experiences intoxication along with other effects similar to those produced by alcohol. Alcohol-like effects may include slurred speech, an inability to coordinate movements, euphoria, and dizziness. In addition, users may experience lightheadedness, hallucinations, and delusions.

Because intoxication lasts only a few minutes, abusers frequently seek to prolong the high by continuing to inhale repeatedly over the course of several hours, a very dangerous practice. With successive inhalations, abusers can suffer loss of consciousness and death. At the least, they will feel less inhibited and less in control. After heavy use of inhalants, abusers may feel drowsy for several hours and experience a lingering headache.

What Is the Scope of Inhalant Abuse?

Inhalant abuse was up significantly for the second year in a row among 8th-graders, according to the latest MTF data, while use among 10th- and 12th-graders continued to decline.

The rate of high school seniors who abused inhalants in the past year was 4.2 percent in 2004, down from the peak of 8.0 percent in 1995. Annual abuse of inhalants among 10th-graders was 5.9 percent in 2004, also down from a high in 1995 (9.6 percent). Among 8th-graders, 2004 abuse figures, at 9.6 percent, were down overall from the 1995 peak of 12.8 percent, but were up from the 2002 rate of 7.7 percent.

According to the 2003 NSDUH, lifetime, past year, and past month inhalant use among persons aged 12 to 17 were 10.7 percent, 4.5 percent, and 1.3 percent, respectively. The number of new inhalant users increased from 627,000 new users in 1994 to 1 million in 2002. Inhalant initiates were predominantly under age 18 (78 percent in 2002).

MTF's lifetime prevalence figures indicate that the percentages of students who have tried inhalants continue to decrease steadily for 10th- and 12th-graders. In 2004, 12.4 percent of 10th-graders and 11.9 percent of 12th-graders said they have abused inhalants at least once in their lives. Although lifetime prevalence peaked for 8th-graders in 1995 (21.6 percent), rates of inhalant use among this group are still high. In fact, 8th-graders reported a significant increase in lifetime use from 15.8 percent in 2003 to 17.3 percent in 2004. For 10th-graders, the peak was 19.3 percent in 1996. For seniors, rates were highest in 1994 at 17.7 percent. These data raise a question: How can fewer 12th-graders than 8th-graders consistently report they have ever abused inhalants? Possibly, many 12th-graders fail to recall their much earlier use of inhalants or, more troubling, many 8th-grade inhalant abusers may have dropped out of school by the 12th grade and are no longer included in the survey population.

Percent of 8th-Graders Reporting Lifetime Use of Inhalants Increased

Gender differences in inhalant abuse have been identified at different points in childhood. The 2004 MTF indicates that 10.5 percent of 8th grade females reported using inhalants in the past year, compared with 8.8 percent of 8th grade males. Among 12th- graders, 3.4 percent of females and 4.8 percent of males reported using inhalants in the past year. The National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH), an annual survey of drug use among the Nation's noninstitutionalized civilians, reports that similar percentages of 12- to 17-year-old boys and girls abused inhalants in 2003. However, the percentage of 18- to 25-year-old males who abused inhalants within the past month was more than twice that of females in that age group, suggesting that sustained abuse of inhalants is more common among males.

People who abuse inhalants are found in both urban and rural settings. Research on factors contributing to inhalant abuse suggests that adverse socioeconomic conditions, a history of childhood abuse, poor grades, and dropping out of school all are associated with inhalant abuse.

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