Children as Young as 4 & 5
Inhalant
Abuse on the Rise: |
| Alabama,
Alaska, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas and Virginia roll
out programs to curb use among children.
WASHINGTON, March 9 2004 -- A school-based program to
educate parents on the risks of inhalant abuse was
launched today in response to the increasing misuse of
common household products by adolescents to get
"high." |
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Product shown for illustration of categories only
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The Inhalant Abuse Prevention
Program, sponsored by the Alliance for Consumer Education
(ACE) and the American School Counselor Association (ASCA),
will roll out in Alabama, Alaska, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas
and Virginia this spring before going national in the fall.
According to recent data from the U.S.
government-funded "Monitoring the Future" survey, one in every
5 students reports having abused inhalants by eighth grade.
Other data from the Partnership for a Drug-Free America (PDFA)
show that fewer children today associate abusing inhalants
with serious health risks, which experts suggest means an
increase in abuse of inhalants.
The Alaska Profile on Drug Indicators
reports that the percentage of adolescents who abuse inhalants
is second only to the number who abuse marijuana. In some
communities, experts believe as many as 90 percent of all
elementary school students have tried or are abusing
inhalants. Alaska is the only state with a treatment center -
the
Tundra Swan Inhalant Treatment Center - dedicated
solely to helping teens addicted to inhalants.
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More than 1,400 inexpensive and
readily-available products -- including correction fluid, nail
polish remover, computer dust removal spray, hair spray,
pressurized dessert toppings, air freshener, felt tipped
markers, spray paint, glue, butane lighters and cooking spray
-- are "huffed" or "sniffed" by children to achieve short-term
intoxication. For less than $2 and a rag or paper bag, a child
can get highs similar to those produced by alcohol.
"Inhalant abusers risk an array of
devastating medical consequences," said George Rodgers, Jr.,
M.D., Ph.D. of the University of Louisville's Sections of
Pharmacology and Toxicology and International Pedia-trics.
"When used inappropriately, chemicals found in commonly-abused
products can kill a child the first time he or she `sniffs'
and cause irreversible damage to the brain, heart, lungs,
kidneys and liver."
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| Among
users, inhalant use is referred to as "huffing,"
"bagging," "sniffing," and "wanging."
These are the most
common household sources for Inhalants:
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Air
fresheners
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cooking
spray
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oven cleaner
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felt-tipped
pens
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nail polish
remover
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Paint Thinner
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aerosol
whipped
cream
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Whipped Cream
Cartages
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correction
fluid
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computer
dust removal spray
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hair spray
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spray paint
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glue
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butane
lighters
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"Inhalants can be addictive, with children
moving on to marijuana, narcotics and alcohol," said Carrie
Anderson, M.D., associate director of the family practice
residency program at St. Francis Hospital and Health Centers,
Indianapolis, Ind. "Unfortunately, diagnosis of abuse is
difficult, treatment complex and the rate of relapse is high.
We need to focus our energy and resources on prevention,
especially among preadolescents and adolescents," she said.
"Our national tracking study reports
significantly fewer kids see the risks of using inhalants to
get high," said PDFA President and CEO Stephen J. Pasierb.
"These attitudinal data tell us one thing: the number of teens
abusing inhalants is very likely to increase - and will
continue increasing - until we educate them and their parents
about this dangerous form of substance abuse."
The ACE Inhalant Abuse Prevention Program
will provide school counselors with specially developed kits
containing guidelines and handouts for use in education
sessions with parents of elementary and middle-school age
students. The Program's goal is to increase the number of
parents who include the risks of inhalant abuse in discussions
with their children about drugs and alcohol from the current
47 percent to 80 percent by 2007.
"This is an ambitious undertaking, but the alternative -
the status quo - is unacceptable," said Carlene Kreider, Vice
President-Innovation for Seaquist Perfect Dispensing and
President of the Board of Trustees for ACE.
"Talking to our kids and their parents about the risks of
substance abuse is part of our core responsibilities as
counselors," said Barbara Shogren, president of the Alaska
School Counseling Association. "This program will help us do a
better job of including inhalant abuse in these discussions."
Source:
Alliance for Consumer
Education
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