Shelbie Justice

HLTH-1050-048
Paul M Roberts
April 27, 2014
Research Paper

Dusty Brains
Inhalant abuse seems to be a current drug issue right now. It has been around for quite
some time, first dating back into the early 1800s, where ether and nitrous oxide were two
prominent examples. Now days, inhalants include aerosol cans, glues, and even dusters. These
can be abused by inhaling these products on purpose to give you a mental high. Dust-Off or
other aerosolized cans of compressed air are common household and office cleaners used for
dusting your home or cleaning out your computer keyboard is the newest trend for getting high
for teenagers. The act is being called huffing, and it is ultimately inhalant abuse. This is
becoming more and more popular among teenagers. The act of dusting is performed by
inhaling the air out of a can or from these products, almost as you would inhale helium out of a
balloon. This drug is addictive and has many possible side effects and can sometimes lead to
death.
Dust-Off has dangerous ingredients like chemical vapors such as Freon type of gas or
fluorinated hydrocarbon that abusers will inhale on purpose to obtain a mental high. The high
from this gas gives users a few minutes of parallelization and a euphoric feeling. In an article I
read from Today by Peter Alexander, someone he interviewed gave the following statement
about how he felt while taking his hit: I couldn't move for three to four minutes, and I was
staring at a door thinking I wanted to get up and go and touch it and I couldn't do it," says
Goudberg. "It's one of the scariest feelings in the world." (Alexander)
So if it is indeed one of the scariest feelings in the world, why is it rising to become one
of the most popular drugs to abuse? Inhalant experimentation is initiated earlier than any other
illicit drug. In 2010, a NSDUH (National Survey on Drug Use and Health) survey reported that a
higher percentage of 12 and 13 year olds abused inhalants before marijuana, 68% of primary
population of inhalant abusers are 18 years old and younger and that females typically start
before males. In 2011, 7% of eighth graders, 4.5% of tenth graders, and 3.2% of Seniors in high
school reported abuse (Stoppler). The reported abuse has decreased from its 1990s peak,
however it is still a big problem and could be getting bigger again, especially among the
younger generation.
Usually inhalants are very easily accessible, as they can be used from household
cleaners or keyboard cleaners. Although, Dust-Off and aerosol spray cleaners along with
keyboard cleaners are the most common for teenagers to use, there are many others that can
be used to give the same effect and just as, if not more, reachable. These products include:
paint thinner, gasoline, deodorant, nail polish remover, felt tip markers, hair care products like
hairspray, or laughing gas at the dentists office. In the same article as the one mentioned
earlier, 18 year old Jessie Stotz says this about inhalant products: "There wasn't the hassle of
finding somebody to buy it for you and stuff, you could walk into a store, being 13 years old,
and buy it yourself. (Alexander). This could be why it is so popular among children and
teenagers. Curiosity, peer pressure, and media often play a huge roll as well. In the 2003 movie,
Thirteen, the opening scene showed two girls huffing and then slapping each other to get
them out of their trancelike states. However, sometimes a slap doesnt get you out of it, as easy
as it looked in this movie. Other movies huffing was shown in include:
The Basketball Diaries (1995)
Love Liza (2001)
Little Shop of Horrors (1985)
Life as a House (2001).
The effects of using this drug can be very dangerous and takes a serious toll on your
health, and can also be fatal. Effects include dizziness, a euphoric sensation, lightheadedness,
hallucinations, impaired judgment, and even permanent damage to your brain. Being a long-
term inhalant abuser can prompt even more serious consequences such as depression, weight
loss, weakness, irritability and lack of coordination. More serious and irreversible health issues
that can be obtained from chronic inhalant abuse include liver, kidney, lung and brain damage.
Perhaps the most frightening and serious is cardiac arrest which is fatal, and can happen to first
time users after only one hit. Sudden Sniffing Death provokes irregular heart rhythms which
can lead to cardiac arrest (Stoppler); this is the most common practice by first time users.
The more preventative steps that can be taken to stop inhalant abuse by people,
especially teenagers, the statistics will decrease and that is the ultimate goal. A measure that
has been taken in the past has been retailers such as Staples and Walmart restricting the buying
age to some of the most abused products to 18 years old and putting bigger warning labels on
top of the cans or products. Another one is manufacturing companies have added chemicals
that give these products a bitter smell and/or taste in hopes to prevent inhalant abuse of their
products. Other prevention methods include making sure youre teenagers know the dangers
of these products and are careful to read warning labels and obviously to stay away from
harmful products like these.
Inhalant abuse is not as obvious as other drug abuse might be, which makes it harder to
prevent and detect. However, some signs that a person may be abusing these products are:
strange smells around the area,
dazed or bloodshot eyes,
empty cans in the garbage,
residue on the persons clothes or face,
And disappearance of the products at very fast rates.
Inhalant abuse is a really major and dangerous problem, and it seems to be growing at a
rapid pace. However, some people think it is a back seat problem compared to other
widely and more publicized drugs (Levinthal). This could become a really big epidemic,
as big as the other concerns, if it continues to grow. The effects are scary and very
dangerous, and can often lead to death. Children and teenagers are very curious and
we, as a society, need to educate not only them but everyone on the dangers and risks
of this new and upcoming drug.



Alexander, Peter. "'Dusting' is the new killer high for teens." TODAY.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 8 May
2014. <http://www.today.com/id/8714725/ns/today/t/dusting-new-killer-high-
teens/#.U2rSavPnbIU>.

Stoppler, MD, Melissa. "Huffing (Inhalant Abuse) Symptoms, Signs, Abuse Information -
MedicineNet." MedicineNet. N.p., n.d. Web. 8 May 2014.
<http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=47975>.

"The Best Huffing Movies." Ranker. N.p., n.d. Web. 8 May 2014.
<http://www.ranker.com/list/best-huffing-movies-list/all-genre-movies-lists>.

"Top 5 Household Items Abused by Teenagers." Top 5 Household Items Abused by Teenagers.
N.p., n.d. Web. 8 May 2014. <http://www.clearviewtreatment.com/household-items-abused-
by-teenagers.html>.

Levinthal, Charles F.. Drugs, behavior, and modern society. 8th ed. Boston: Allyn and Bacon,
2002. Print.