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Prevention leaders, schools team up against inhalant abuse
LEXINGTON - National Inhalants and Poisons Awareness Week is March 16-22. Rockbridge Area Community Services and the Rockbridge Area Prevention Coalition urge parents and concerned citizens to join with them in this observance. The goal of this campaign is to raise awareness about the dangers of inhalant abuse and to educate parents and young people about this deadly practice.
Laura Jane Wilson, RACS prevention coordinator and co-organizer of the agency's education campaign noted, "Almost one in every five eighth-graders has intentionally inhaled household chemicals to get high, according to the latest National Institute on Drug Abuse 'Monitoring the Future Survey.' In the Rockbridge area (which includes Bath area youth), the 2005 'Virginia Youth Survey' revealed that 17 percent of eighth-graders had experimented with inhalants and 9 percent had used inhalants within the last 30 days. The survey also ranked inhalants as the third most abused substance by middle school students, after alcohol and tobacco, and is more prevalent than marijuana among this age group."
According to Dr. Kelly Shifflett, RACS' director of prevention and public relations, inhalant abuse, also known as "huffing," is considered a "gateway drug" because it often leads to abuse of other substances. Inhalants are as close as the kitchen sink or a school classroom. The effects of inhalants on the human body can include damage to the brain, respiratory system, liver and kidneys, short-term memory loss, and hearing impairment. "Sudden Sniffing Death Syndrome" can occur when oxygen in the lungs is replaced by the inhalant and the person suffocates to death.
Although inhalant abuse is not always obvious, the RACS staff point out there are warning signs such as: a chemical odor on breath or clothing; paint on hands, mouth, or nose; red or runny eyes or nose; pains in chest or stomach; fatigue, nausea, and shortness of breath; spots or sores around the mouth; drunk or dazed appearance; and anxiety, excitability, or irritability.
Local prevention experts believe the key to preventing inhalant abuse is education. They are urging parents to take this opportunity to learn about this problem and explain the danger to their children.
According to Wendy Morgan, coalition facilitator for the Rockbridge Area Prevention Coalition, "The coalition has ordered 2,200 copies of an inhalants information pamphlet to be sent home with every 6th-8th grade student in Lexington, Buena Vista, Rockbridge County and Bath County. Other suggested activities will be distributed to the school guidance counselors at the March coalition meeting."
For more information about inhalant abuse, visit the Virginia Department of Health's Web site www.vdh.virginia.gov, and find "Inhalant Abuse" in the A-Z index. Parents can take a 20-minute interactive training by going to www.inhalantabusetraining.org and clicking on "Virginia Parent Training." For resources and referrals in the Rockbridge area, including Bath, call Rockbridge Area Community Services' Greenhouse Road facility in Lexington at 540-463-3141.
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