Tweens Favor Inhalants To Get High

Study Shows Youngsters Use Inhalants As "Gateway" To Other Illicit Drugs

(WebMD)  A newly released federal government report points to an alarming trend - that preteens and young teens who use drugs chose inhalants as a "gateway" drug to other illicit drugs.

The findings released at the National Inhalant Prevention Coalition's latest news conference reveal that among young drug users, 12- and 13-year-olds sniff common household chemicals to get high, often before moving on to marijuana or abusing pain pills.

"Inhalants are everywhere in the house and garage, and parents often do not realize that the glue and paint are not being used for crafts or science projects," H. Westley Clark, MD says in a news release. Clark is the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Statistics director of the Center for Substance Abuse Treatment.

According to Clark's prepared statements, "while the data show that often children move away from using inhalants as they grow older, they often move on to other illicit drugs. Inhalants are a health hazard that can damage the brain, heart, liver, or kidneys." Clark warns parents that inhalants can "cause severe damage and even death."

The report looked at national survey results from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health of adolescents aged 12 to 17 done from 2002 to 2006. The combined data showed that an annual average of 593,000 adolescents had used inhalants for the first time in the year before the survey. Twenty-one percent surveyed say they used an illicit drug in the past year.

Among the youngest surveyed, aged 12 or 13, inhalants were the most reported class of illicit drug used in the past year. Marijuana was the most-used class of illicit drug among the older teens, with use of pain relievers in second. Rate of inhalant use in the past year went up from age 12 to 14 (3.4% to 5.3%), but then decreased by age 17 (3.9%).

Shoe polish, glue, and toluene were the most-used inhalants in adolescents aged 12 to 15.

There is concern that young people are not taking the risks of inhalants seriously, according to study authors. "While teens are increasingly aware of the dangers of illicit street drugs, they continue to underestimate the risks of abusing products that can be found in the home, like inhalants and prescription and over-the-counter medications," Stephen J. Pasierb, president of the Partnership for a Drug-Free America, said during a news conference.

Pasieb offered these tips for parents:

• Be aware of which products can be abused.


• Keep track of potentially dangerous products in the home.


• Talk to your children about the risks of inhalant abuse.

Related Study Looks at Kids in Treatment for Drug Abuse

Here are the findings for a related federal government study looking at youngsters who get treated for substance abuse.

• 45% of those who abused inhalants also have psychiatric disorders, compared with 29% who abused other drugs.



• 12- to 17-year-olds made up 8% of substance abuse treatment admissions in 2006, but they made up nearly half of all admissions who say they used inhalants.



• 41% of teenage girls admitted to drug treatment centers involved inhalants; 30% of those admitted did not report inhalants.

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On The Early Show Friday, Jordan Paul, 17, who started using inhalants at 14 and is now in rehab, and Carrie Wilkens, a psychologist specializing in addiction, spoke with co-anchor Maggie Rodriguez about the dangers of young teens using inhalants.

Paul, who is from Ohio, used a series of inhalants -- gasoline, hair spray, cleaning supplies -- whatever was available. He is being treated for addiction at Pathway Family Center in Milford, Ohio.

TO SEE A SUMMARY OF THE INHALANTS REPORT, AND FOR LINKS TO THE REPORT ITSELF AND A WEALTH OF OTHER, RELATED RESOURCES, CLICK HERE.

To see the Early Show segment, click here.

[honestabe8]

but not spell too well.

[honestabe8]

michelle: people use drugs because it makes them feell good.

[michellem99-2009]

Can''t they use the word pre teen. That is what they are. 10,11,12 are pre teens. What was what I was called, a teen 13 thru 19, Adult 20 on.

[Wookiee-1138]

Oh please. When I was that age we snorted Jello powder to get high.

[michellem99-2009]

It is the dumbing down and it will get worse. In our day we were taught common sense,manners,right from wrong. Newster1 Amen..As a legally blind I have to use icons on packages. It is the sighted that are the scarish..Bush as well..He was a drunk got a DUI in Maine at 40.

[nothappyatall]

is it just me or does it seem we are creating these kids who have no common sense? It seems to me, back in the 70s and 80s, tweens/teens just had more maturity and

Posted by olebd "

I call it the dumbing-down of America, the result of the foolish school policy I call ''no idiot left behind'', we have kids who cant even find the PANHANDLE STATE of Florida on a blank outline map of the USA, who drink drain cleaner or something out of a gallon jug under the sink because its the same color as cool-aid and they were too stupid to know the difference.
These are the ones who will be flying your airplane, driving your bus, building your car, house, assembling your pacemaker someday or injecting your meds int he hospital!

scary isnt it? thse who couldnt find their way out of a paper bag flying your next airplane trip- hope it wont be your LAST one because the pilot mistook .10 for 10, or your nurse mistook the dose of your critical IV meds as 1 cc instead of .1 cc

[michellem99-2009]

It is sad that adults will place them in programs that don''t work. The right thing is as a family deal with this as a family. No they rather get the kid out of their hair by sending them off somewhere. Who know may be the parents are the sniffers and not the kid.

[wdtony]

Inhalants are bad for us, I think we all agree that they are very dangerous. There is no such thing as a gateway drug though, this is a fabrication and a scare tactic. I was placed in a facility for drug abuse but the funny thing was, I didn''t abuse drugs at all (my parents were convinced by the program that I was though). I was forced to lie about all the drugs I had done to progress in the program, one of these drugs I had to confess to using was inhalants (Lie). There was no other means of getting out without total compliance. I was brainwashed in this facility which is now called Pathway Family Center, as mentioned above. Don''t believe the success stories you hear from these kids, I lied about it because I was brainwashed and forced to do so, who really knows who had a drug problem and who didn''t. I am always very skeptical when I hear the success stories. I would like to reiterate that I think inhalant use is very dangerous and that kids should be better educated about the health risks. Parents should not suspect drug abuse or criminalize their kids for making stupid decisions because they are trying to grow up in a flawed and complicated society. My best advice: PLEASE DO NOT PLACE YOUR KIDS IN PROGRAMS! Don''t believe that this is the only thing that can save your kid''s life, this is a lie. In the long run, programs tear families apart.

Write me at: programtruth "at" hotmail.com

[neoconslayer]

The only gateway drugs are alcohol and tobacco.
These are two substances which:
1) are common in American households
2) kids are told are ''dangerous'', usually by people who are using them.
Inhalants, marijuana, and all the others tend to not
1) be available for sale at the grocery store
2) not be common in American households

These things are problems in America, however, it doesn''t help to solve a problem when it is lied about for political/economic reasons.
These are not gateway drugs.

[hypnotoad72]

The heck is a "tween"? Sounds like a bird''s spleen on a plate.

I''ve heard of a "twink", and I hope that doesn''t apply here!!