Teen Inhalant Use Rising AgainMarch 22, 2004
Research Summary
Inhalant use among American youth, which had declined after a 1990s advertising campaign, is on the rise again, according to a report that finds a growing number of teens experimenting with inhalants such as glue, nail polish, and computer-keyboard cleaners, Reuters reported March 18.According to government and non-profit group experts, some young teens have returned to "huffing" or sniffing household products to get high. The practice can leave users brain damaged or dead.
The experts called for a renewed campaign to warn parents and children about the dangers of experimenting with inhalants.
"Today's sixth-graders, who were too young to benefit from the campaigns of the 1990s, are now exposed to inhalant abuse as they enter middle school and are unaware of its risks," the Partnership for a Drug-Free America (PDFA) said in its new teen drug survey. The PDFA was involved in the 1995 anti-inhalant advertising campaign, which targeted children aged 9 to 17 and their parents.
Dr. Nora Volkow, head of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, said the 1995 campaign was effective. "In 1996 12.5 percent of 8th-graders aged 13 and 14 had used inhalants in the last year," she said. "By 2002 we saw that number go down to 7.7 percent."
By 2003, Volkow said, there had been a 14-percent increase in inhalant use. "We need to bring back that campaign," she said.
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