Monday, July 24, 2006
Grieving parents to parents: 'Huffing' is more common than you think
The recent huffing incident, in which
an 18-year-old inhaling propellant from a can of computer duster
drove his car into a crowd of spectators at the Madison Regatta, has
public safety officials worried, according to an article in The
Courier-Journal ("Driver who hit regatta fans charged," July
20).
They should be worried, and so should
every parent of a preteen or teenager who isn't aware of this type
of substance abuse.
Indiana law changed on July 1 to add
additional chemicals to the list of substances illegal to consume
with the intent to get high. As parents, we believe education about
inhalant abuse must also be a focus.
Huffing -- the intentional inhaling
of a volatile propellant or gas to get high -- may seem
unthreatening because its effects are short-lived.
Plus, the propellants and gases that
produce the brief feeling of euphoria are in hundreds of household
items. So how could they be deadly or harmful?
They are harmful because the
chemicals that make up propellants in aerosol cans are poisons and
toxins that were never intended to be introduced into the human
body.
Our family learned that lesson the
hard way when our 16-year-old son David died after inhaling the
propellant in a can of computer duster.
An astounding and terrifying reality
is the wide gap between what parents know or think about inhalant
abuse and what young people report.
According to a survey conducted by
the Partnership for a Drug Free America, one in five teens has
abused inhalants. Yet only 5 percent of parents believe that their
child has ever tried inhalants.
When parents are aware of a lethal
risk in their home, they do everything possible to warn their
children and/or eliminate that risk.
But these useful household products
can be lethal when abused, and unfortunately few parents and their
teens are talking about the dangers of huffing or looking for signs
of use.
The reality is that every time teens
abuse inhalants, they are playing Russian Roulette.
Huffing can kill the first time, the
twentieth time or the hundredth time. Continued use can result in
brain damage, hearing and memory loss, and/or permanent damage to
the lungs, liver, kidneys and other vital organs.
In a survey compiled in 2005 by the
Indiana Prevention Resource Center, one in 10 Hoosier eighth-,
ninth- and 10th-graders reported using inhalants at least once.
Inhalant use in sixth-, seventh- and
eighth-grade students was the third most abused substance behind
alcohol and cigarettes, with sixth-graders reporting almost twice
the use of inhalants as marijuana.
This should be a wake-up call for
parents, schools, our entire community -- for more conversation and
education.
Our children deserve to have
information that could save their lives and the lives of their
friends.
Information permits discussion, which
can lead to prevention. Parents, take time this summer to talk to
your teens and pre-teens about huffing. Arm yourselves with
information about the dangers of inhalants and how to talk to your
kids about drugs through Web sites such as
www.drugfree.org,
www.drugfreemarioncounty.org,
www.inhalant.org,
and
www.the24group.org.
Talk to your school administrators
about getting information about inhalant abuse in the library,
counseling office, and at PTA meetings.
We thought we would know the signs of
serious drug use in our son, but we were wrong. Substance abuse cuts
across all sectors of our society and touches one family in three.
Our family story doesn't have a happy
ending, but we can honor David's memory if we can help make others
aware of the deadly perils of inhalant abuse.
KIM and MARISSA MANLOVE
Indianapolis, Ind. 46236
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