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MARCH 10, 2008 —Do you know what hairspray, lighter fluid and felt-tip markers all have in common? They’re part of a new class of ‘drug’ gaining popularity with today’s teens – and they’re all potentially fatal. March 16–22 is National Inhalants & Poison Awareness Week, a good time to learn the facts about this deadly trend – and discuss these dangers with your children.
"Young people think inhaling – huffing, sniffing, dusting or bagging – is a harmless way to get high," says William C. Dalsey, M.D., Chairman of the Emergency Department at Kimball Medical Center in Lakewood. "Because it doesn't look like a drug, they don’t think it can hurt them. It’s not illegal, and it’s right there under the kitchen sink, on a shelf in the garage or in their classroom at school," he adds.
This new ‘drug’ is Inhalants – common, easily-accessible household products, the fumes of which are sniffed, snorted, inhaled from a plastic bag or "huffed" from an inhalant-soaked rag, sock, or roll of toilet paper. It’s a practice that’s becoming as popular among middle school students as marijuana, as a means of getting high. Because it’s highly addictive, it’s becoming a growing problem.
According to A Partnership for a Drug Free America, 21 percent of all teens in this country – one in five – have tried inhalants, and more than a million young people admit to abusing inhalants last year alone.
While the high achieved from inhalants only lasts a few minutes, the effects it has on the body and mind can last a lifetime. “Inhalants can and do kill,” says Dr. Dalsey, who has seen the fallout of inhalant use in the Emergency Department at Kimball Medical Center.
When young people are brought in to the Emergency Department at Kimball Medical Center as a result of inhalant abuse – or for any potentially life threatening emergency – they are triaged and treated without delay, according to Dr. Dalsey. This can be key to enhancing their overall prognosis.
“We’ve seen the serious complications from huffing here,” he says, “and the sudden death and serious complications are always tragic, especially in young, otherwise healthy children.
“Parents need to be aware of what huffing is, why it’s so dangerous and to share that information with their kids. Because there are a lot of kids out there that think this is okay,” he adds. Inhalants are also believed to be the gateway to experimentation with illegal drugs and alcohol down the road.
“Huffing has a similar effect on the body as anesthetics,” says Dr. Dalsey. “Based on the level of chemicals in the body, the user can experience slight stimulation, a loss of inhibition or a complete loss of consciousness. They can also suffer from Sudden Sniffing Death Syndrome caused by sudden cardiac and pulmonary arrest,” he adds.
Inhalants can also cause nausea, slurred speech, hallucinations, and trigger aggressive or careless behavior that often results in accidents and injuries. Long-term use can result in hearing loss, liver and kidney damage, muscle spasms and brain damage.
According to Dr. Dalsey, inhalants are found in hundreds of common products. “Products that are safely used by millions of people every day,” he explains, “can be deadly when misused as an inhalant.” And like Russian Roulette, huffing is deadly, but in a random way. “The user can die the first time he or she huffs, the tenth or the 100th time these chemicals are inhaled,” he explains. “There’s just no telling from one time to the next.”
Some of the common products used in huffing include nail polish remover, cleaning fluids, furniture polish, hair spray, gasoline, gases such as butane and propane, Freon, the propellant in aerosol whipped cream, spray paint, fabric protector, glue and rubber cement, cooking spray, air fresheners, computer keyboard cleaner, markers, and correction fluid.
Learning about inhalant abuse, knowing the signs and symptoms and educating your children about the dangers could help save his or her life. “If your son or daughter has paint stains on their fingers or around their mouth, if their clothing or breath smells like chemicals, if they’re vomiting, their eyes are watering and red, these are all signs of possible inhalant use,” says Dr. Dalsey. Other symptoms include: sores around the mouth, a drunk, dazed or glassy-eyed look, loss of appetite, anxiety, irritability or excitability.
If you suspect that your child has been huffing, keep them calm and seek help. “Inhalant abusers, if agitated, can experience hallucinations, become violent and can suffer from heart dysfunction leading to cardiac arrest,” Dr. Dalsey adds. “Stay calm, make sure the room is well ventilated and call 911. If the child is unconscious or not breathing, perform CPR until help arrives.”
Last year, more than fifty-five thousand patients chose Kimball Medical Center’s Emergency Department for their care. A redesign of the hospital’s Emergency Department in 2004, and the process by which the Medical Center delivers care to their patients, has helped to streamline services, increase efficiency and expedite care to all patients. The effort has also ensured Kimball’s Emergency Department remains among the State’s leaders in overall patient satisfaction. In fact, in 2007, Kimball Medical Center’s Emergency Department once again achieved the highest overall patient satisfaction scores and the highest satisfaction with the “overall rating of the care provided” in the State of New Jersey.
For more information about hospital services or for a referral to a physician affiliated with Kimball Medical Center, please call the Saint Barnabas Health Care Link at 1-888-SBHS-123 (732.724.7123).
CONTACT: Kristine A. Brown
Director of Public Relations
(732) 557-3902
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