Inhalants

Mind Altering Drugs

Inhalants

In this group are substances which are not considered as drugs but which are abused for their psychotic effects. They are grouped together because they are taken into the body by sniffing or inhaling. Glues, aerosols, spray paints, lighter fluid, petrol and nail polish are some of the household products used as inhalants. If the fumes of these products are inhaled, they can produce a change in the mind similar to a hallucinogenic effect. An inhalant 'high' usually lasts for a much shorter time - only about an hour.

Because inhalants are cheap and easily available, they are used by young people. Luckily those who try them are not encouraged to use them regularly because they are unpleasant. But inhalants are deadly and they are used by drug addicts as substitutes.

A person who is sniffing an inhalant has trouble keeping his or her balance, has a glassy stare and finds it hard to talk. The user feels drunk and dream-like, and the judgment becomes clouded. Some users feel they can fly. Clowning around under the influence of inhalants can cause accidental deaths. Death can also be caused when a user breathes too deeply and inhales enough chemical fumes to pass out. If the person inhales the substance out of a plastic bag, there is danger of death by suffocation.

Heavy use of inhalants over a long period of time has caused severe physical problems such as loss of weight, liver and kidney damage, bone marrow changes, and even permanent brain damage.

There are a few inhalants that do have a medical purpose such as amyl nitrate or poppers and nitrous oxide. Poppers are small cotton-wrapped glass tubes that contain the stimulant drug. They are inhaled by patients who have pain caused by heart disease, but they are also used illicitly.

Highlights

Dealing with normal adolescent
Rebellion