Pubdate: Tue, 25 Jan 2005
Source: Ft. Worth Star-Telegram (TX)
Copyright: 2005 Star-Telegram, Fort Worth, Texas
Contact:  http://www.star-telegram.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/162
Author: Shankar Vedantam, The Washington Post
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/youth.htm (Youth)

INHALANT ABUSE GAINING MOMENTUM AMONG AMERICAN YOUTHS

Diane Stem of Old Hickory, Tenn., vividly remembers the day she was called 
home by her distraught husband and daughter: Her 16-year-old son, Ricky Joe 
Stem Jr., had been found dead in the house with a plastic bag over his 
head. He had been sniffing Freon from the house's air-conditioning system.

A hidden epidemic is gaining momentum in the United States, experts say. 
Children as young as fourth-graders are deliberately inhaling the fumes of 
dangerous chemicals from a variety of household and office products. 
Inhalants, as they are known, are widely available and hard to detect, and 
are fueling a dangerous trend: The most reliable annual survey of drug use 
among children has found that inhalants are the one group of drugs in which 
abuse is on the rise.

The chemicals travel rapidly to the brain to produce highs similar to 
alcohol intoxication. Unlike the effect of alcohol, these highs disappear 
within minutes, making it hard for parents to detect the abuse.

The products, which can include gasoline, cigarette lighter fluid, cleaning 
supplies and adhesives, are often highly toxic and addictive.

New brain imaging research has shown that the chemicals can produce lasting 
changes in the brain, as well as heart, kidney and liver damage.

The new brain imaging research shows that different inhalants affect 
different parts of the brain, which might be why users report preferences. 
"Some kids like to huff acetone, some like to huff toluene and some like 
butane," said Stephen Dewey, a researcher at the Brookhaven National 
Laboratory in New York.

Some indications suggest that the problem may be growing faster among 
girls. Overall, nearly one in five eighth-graders has tried an inhalant, 
usually by breathing from a rag or a bag doused with a chemical. The 
increase in abuse has tracked a sharp drop in youngsters' perceptions of 
the risks of inhalants, said Lloyd Johnston, a researcher at the University 
of Michigan who helps conduct the annual "Monitoring the Future" survey of 
eighth-, 10th- and 12th-graders.

Data show that inhalant abuse among children is growing in all parts of the 
country. Use is highest among Anglos, followed closely by Hispanics, and is 
lower among African-Americans.
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