It’s a scary statistic, but true: by eighth grade, one in five young people has used an inhalant to get high, risking brain damage and death. Young people can get high on more than 1,000 legal, useful, everyday products.

Inhalants are chemicals that cause a person to feel "high” after inhaling or breathing them in. People might abuse inhalants because they feel pressure from peers. They’re also cheap and easy to find.

Common ways to abuse inhalants include:
• Huffing—Breathing in fumes from a cloth soaked in a chemical.
• Sniffing—Breathing in fumes from an open container or filling a closet or car with vapors.
• Bagging—Placing the substance in a plastic bag and holding it over the mouth and nose.
• Spraying—Spraying a substance directly into the mouth.

Signs of inhalant abuse may include:
• Red or runny eyes or nose.
• Spots or sores around the mouth.
• Unusual chemical breath odor.
• Drunk, dazed or dizzy appearance.
• Nausea, loss of appetite.
• Anxiety, excitability, irritability.
• Disappearance of household products.
• Discovery of chemical-soaked rags, socks or bags.

Abuse of inhalants may cause many harmful effects such as:
• Permanent damage to the nervous system, lungs, kidneys and other organs.
• Coma.
• Sudden cardiac arrest.
• Danger to unborn children when used by pregnant women.
• Poor judgment, vision and coordination, and loss of many other skills needed for safe driving and making safe decisions.
• Increased risk of major depression and suicide.

In addition, mixing inhalants with other drugs, especially depressants like alcohol or tranquilizers is hazardous.

Abused substances include everyday products found in the home. Below is a room-by-room list of examples.

Kitchen
• Butane.
• Cooking spray.
• Correction fluid.
• Lighter fluid.
• Whipped cream propellants.

Bedroom
• Hair sprays.
• Nail glues and polish remover.

Garage
• Gasoline.
• Kerosene.
• Refrigerants.
• Turpentine.
• Carburetor cleaner.

Workshop
• Aerosol sprays.
• Felt tip markers.
• Glues and adhesives.
• Enamel paint and paint thinners.
• Solvents.
• Spray paints.

Prevention is key
Talk with your children. Teach them the dangers of this abuse. Education must start at a young age. Inhalant abuse often begins in elementary school and can lead to further drug abuse, lifelong problems or even death. If you suspect inhalant abuse, consult a school counselor, doctor or drug counseling center.

FAST FACT: Substances commonly found in the home are the most likely agents to be involved in a poison exposure. Toxic products located in the home account for more than 90 percent of poison exposures.

Mark Kostic, MD, is the associate medical director of Wisconsin Poison Center, specializing in medical toxicology and emergency medicine. The Poison Center, located at Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin, provides 24-hour, toll-free poison information for all individuals in Wisconsin. Anyone who has had direct contact with a known or potential poison can receive immediate advice on what steps to take to prevent injury from that exposure by calling 1-800-222-1222. Translators are available.