Safe Kids Against Inhalants

Safe Kids of Central Shenandoah Valley has done a great job in raising awareness of inhalant abuse prevention in their community! After receiving a grant from the Virginia Department of Health in 2007, they began their efforts to spread inhalant abuse prevention messages to youths.

They have collaborated with the Harrisonburg City Schools and Risk Watch to issue a poster and essay contest for 7th graders. Their poster and essay contest was such a success last year, they are doing the same project again this year. Each participant will receive an "Inhalants Stink" t-shirt and tickets to the movie theater. The program is currently wrapping up for 2008, and they are happy to announce there have been more participants this year than last!

Safe Kids and the Strong Families Great Youth Coalitions have been working hard on getting inhalant prevention messages out to the Harrisonburg and Rockingham County community. Their Inhalant Abuse prevention display board has been rotated around Harrisonburg businesses and agencies during the past year. The board contains essential information for parents, educators and kids. That board has rotated around 10 businesses in Harrisonburg.

In addition to that, Safe Kids has incorporated table tents and tray liners which appear in middle schools and restaurants.

Safe Kids has also had a presence at several symposiums and fairs during the year. They exhibit their information in a variety of ways, including: table tents, bookmarks, tray liners, Virginia Department of Health’s tip sheet, and ACE’s What Every Parent Needs to Know About Inhalant Abuse brochures to name a few.

Notably, the group featured Inhalant Abuse prevention at the Harrisonburg Teen Pregnancy Prevention’s 2007 Teen Health fair. Approximately 400 teens were in attendance at the fair!

For more information on this group, or to find out how you can get involved, please contact Cindy Reeves at 540-433-4421 or email creeves@rhcc.com.

Williams Speaks to Schools in Kentucky

Sgt. Jeff Williams spoke to crowds comprised of junior high students, high school students, parents, counselors, and police officers for two days last week in Glasgow, Kentucky. The state has made efforts to counter the high inhalant abuse rate in some areas by inviting speakers to talk to schools and community leaders.

Williams says that what he wanted to get across was to, "in plain language, relay the most important information" - the most important information being what inhalants are, signs of inhlanat abuse, as well as the potential consequences. He says that he wants to counter all of the bad information that kids hear from their peers and get the real information out there.

Every child is going to be faced with a choice of whether or not to use inhalants. It's no longer a question of 'if', he says. Parents avoid discussing inhalant abuse with their kids because they "don't want to teach them", so they don't talk to them. Williams is in favor of giving children the real facts, the dangers, and the consequences so that they are able to make an informed decision.

Sgt. Jeff Williams is a police officer from Indiana who has become active in the inhalant community after his son Kyle died in 2004. Last December he was unanimously elected to the ACE Board of Trustees. 

Refrigerant Abuse in Canyon Lake

The Friday Flier printed a letter to the editor on May 2nd from Laurie Saumers, who submitted this piece "in an effort to help get the word out to all parents and residents in our local community[Canyon Lake, CA]".

"Huffing refrigerant is the new and latest high for our children. “Refrigerant?” you’re asking – at least that’s what we asked!

Here is what I learned. Our young children are huffing refrigerant from air conditioners through our community. Apparently this is a cheap and easy high for them, but one that is lethal and will kill. It has killed in the past and will continue too kill until we put a stop to it. This has become the choice drug for children ages 8 to 15, but not limited. They have easy access and it cannot be traced through blood testing.

This was brought to my attention just recently by a gentleman who actually brought his young son who was high on refrigerant to my house late one evening to inform me that my son showed his son how to do this. My first reaction was, “Not my son.” After two days of looking into this, contacting the authorities and the POA [Property Owners Association], many tears later my husband and I are here to say, “Yes our son, yes your son and yes their son.”

Yes, this behavior is out there and happening everyday in our neighborhoods. It’s easy, our air conditioners are right there and, to be honest, who would think someone would steal your refrigerant – but they are! Please watch for this, it could be one child, or even a group them. If they are near your air conditioner they are probably up to no good.

This type of high is very habit forming and very deadly; it has no prejudice, it will take all who is willing. Please talk with your children, know their friends. Make it your business to know who is hanging around your house and neighborhood. I have
always known my son’s friend and their parents. My husband and I can tell you
that, if we had been a little more proactive watching the neighborhood, we would
not be going through this! We love our son, we love your sons; this needs to
stop.

The local authorities are aware this is going on and so is the POA. I will be contacting the local elementary, middle and high schools. We also need your help."

Another resident of Canyon Lake, Charlene Kussner, responded to the letter in the next week's Flyer:

"I wanted to thank Laurie Saumers for her letter to the editor about huffing refrigerant. As a parent of two boys in Canyon Lake, I appreciate her honesty and forthrightness in addressing this issue. We are a community and it does, indeed, take a "village" sometimes to protect our children.

With her candid letter, other parents are now aware of this problem and we can all be vigilant in protecting our young people. Mother to mother – thank you, Laurie!"

Boredom Contributes to Inhalant Use in Oklahoma

The Muskogee Phoenix printed an article called "Parents Might Not Notice Kids 'Huffing'" last week, and featured several residents of the small town in Oklahoma giving their opinions on inhalant abuse.

One teenager, Madison Hayes, says that fun activities would decrease the experimentation with alcohol and drugs:

"Muskogee is a small town; there’s not a lot kids can do. Some of them just drink and smoke pot. They get to do the bragging, and they get to talk about their weekend. I think that more activities would be a positive thing to do.”

She also described someone she knew that had used inhalants, saying that "he tried it because he thought he would just get high, but it turned out to be one of the scariest things he’s ever done,” she said. “He said it was crazy and dumb, and the aftermath was so awful that he would never do it again. I don’t think he knew about the danger at the time, or he would not have done it.”

Valerie Grober, a pharmacist at Wagoner Community Hospital, claims that abusing inhalants is as common as smoking marijuana.

"Abuse of inhalants by middle school children has increased up to 44 percent over a two-year period,” she said. “The products used in huffing are readily available and for sale legally.”

She also advised parents to "remain involved. Many children think huffing is fun and are totally unaware of the very real dangers involved. ... Set a pattern of talking with and listening to your child from the time they are young.”

Grand Island Middle School Congress Meets

On Wednesday, we posted a story about Grand Island, Nebraska's concern about inhalant use in students. One of the responses of the school district to the increasing drug usage in their area was to form a Middle School Youth Congress, comprised of eighty-five middle schoolers who went on a retreat to become better educated in topics such as drug awareness and peer pressure.

The Congress seems to have been a great success. Chuck Matson of the Omaha Police Department explained the difference between using drugs to become healthy versus using them to get high. He especially focued on the abuse of inhalants, and discussed the physical harm that can occur to the body with inhalant use.

He also reminded the students that death can occur the first time that anyone tries inhalants.

Story from the Grand Island Independent.

Internet Trends Worrisome in Nebraska

Community leaders in Grand Island, Nebraska are warning parents about the susceptability of children to trends on the internet, specifically YouTube videos advocating mixing prescription drugs and using inhalants.

A drug expert from Omaha, Chuck Matson, agrees that YouTube encourages kids to try inhalants and that "especially in our middle school age category, we're seeing an increase in use and abuse of inhalants."

One of the students from Barr Middle School, Mckenzie Fyfe, described the inhalant use that she encounters in her classmates:

"They inhale paint in art class, and inhale sharpie markers. They do it in school and after school, when the teacher's not looking. Sometimes they do it in the hallway or the bathrooms. It's just not things we should be doing at twelve-years-old."

Grand Island School District received a grant to form a Middle School Youth Congress formed of eighty-five students. The students are on a retreat today learning about drug trends, avoiding pressure, leadership qualities, and making good decisions.

Story from Nebraska.tv.

R.O.C.K Against Inhalants

A Christian organization based in Ohio named R.O.C.K (Reclaim Our Community Kids) sponsored Drug Update 2008 to inform parents about the drugs that their children are using.

The Rev. Ralph Edwards agreed with other speakers present that the younger that a child is when he begins using drugs, the more likely he is to become addicted. Edwards encouraged parents to,

"spend time with them and know what they’re doing. It makes a difference. It’s not that addiction is anything new, but it’s getting to our kids earlier and earlier, younger and younger. There are more and more kids who just don’t get that they can die from it.”

A police officer from Beaver Township, Brian Hartman, was one of the presenters at the meeting. He focused on describing inhalants and their increasing appeal towards younger children: “We’re talking fourth-graders, even younger. They have easy access to these products in their own homes, at school, all around them, and many of them are using them.”

Article found at Vindy.com.

Community Warning About Inhalants

Parents in Montezuma County, Colorado are being warned of the dangers of inhalants for their teens, especially in using computer dusters.

One concerned parent in the area who wished to remain anonymous said that her daughter had been involved in a car crash after she drove after huffing computer duster. The duster caused her to lose consciousness and the car went out of control. Her daughter does not remember any of the accident.

“She was out of her mind,” the mother said. “I did not know that kids were doing this.”

The mother said her daughter had heard of the practice when watching a movie called “Thirteen.” She reported that her daughter knows at least 15 other teenagers offhand who are using Dust-Off or a product like it to get high, and that her other middle school-aged daughter had also heard about numerous students using compressed air as an inhalant.

Before her daughter had the car accident, the mother had never heard of using this product as a drug, she said.

“I feel like, the kids know about it but I don’t think the parents know about it,” she said.

Diane Fox, the Montezuma-Cortez High School Resource Officer, says "I’m not naive enough to think that it’s not happening, just because we're not catching it a lot.”

Retailers around the community have already placed some restrictions on computer dusters, such as Wal-Mart, which,

"does not carry the product branded as Dust-Off, but the similar product that they do carry for dusting off computers has an age restriction on it," said Ashley Hardie, a spokesperson for Wal-Mart.

When the product is scanned at the register, the cashier is prompted to ensure the person purchasing the product is over 18.

However, according to the mother of the girl who drove while under the influence of inhalants,
her daughter

"obtained compressed air from Wal-Mart, but said the teen and her friend stole the product, knowing that they could not legally buy it from the store."

Taylor, the Mancos counselor, said locking the product behind a secure area might be a more effective way of keeping it away from teens.

Would this be as effective as Taylor believes? If the computer dusters were locked away at Wal-Mart, either teens could ask an 18-year-old friend to buy it for them, or they could stop by another office supply store without the restrictions. Or, they may settle for a different kind of inhalant.

Story courtesy of Stephanie Paige Ogburn, of the Cortez Journal.

Mayor and Governor Inhale Helium, Set Bad Example

During the filming of a promotional ad for the KUSA Channel 9 Health Fair, a community project in Denver, both Mayor Hickenlooper and the Governor Ritter were featured holding balloons and talking in high, squeaky voices - the implication being that they had inhaled the helium.



Viewers called the station, saying that it was inappropriate for elected officials to be huffing anything, even helium. After a week of complaints, the footage was cut from the commercials.

While helium is not an inhalant, there are serious risks involved with its inhalation. A common problem is the lack of oxygen exchange, which can cause dizziness and even unconsciousness. This can result in stumbling or falling into something dangerous.

If a child or adult inhales helium from a tank, there can be more serious injuries involving the lungs. In general, avoid both tanks and balloons.

Inhalant Abuse Prevention Awareness Institute

This conference, presented by the Virginia Inhalant Abuse Prevention Coalition, was held on March 12th in Staunton, VA. The Coalition consists of a group of concerned prevention professionals and educators who are dedicated to raising awareness of inhalant abuse by providing factual information and resources in an effort to decrease inhalant use across the state.


On the night of the 11th, an inhalant prevention summit was held and included all the leaders in the field. Wayne Frith, the facilitator for the evening, engaged the participants on how to utilize the most effective strategies to spread the message at both the community and the national level.

It went very well and a number of interesting topics were presented, such as:

The Tragedy of Inhalant Abuse - this the first topic, presented by Sgt. Jeff Williams. He spoke about losing his son to inhalant abuse and played several YouTube videos to highlight children's exposure to inhalants as being cool.

Inhalant Abuse Basics - Dr. Robert Balster of the Institute for Drug and Alcohol Studies at Virginia Commonwealth University explained what are inhalants as well as why and how they are abused.

Communities in Action - representatives from three different communities shared their approaches to inhalant abuse.

Teaching Kids About Inhalants - the updated Inhalant Abuse Prevention Manual was used to explain the principles for teaching young people about inhalants.

ACE was glad to be a part of this conference and to have our Inhalant Prevention Kits handed out to all attendees.

We'll be working with the Coalition for the next two years as they reach towards their goal of decreasing inhalant abuse in Virginia by 2009.

Kroger Display

Kroger Pharmacy #555 in Kenton, Ohio has taken the initiative to display brochures and posters for NIPAW. Kathleen Hilty is a technician working at the pharmacy who has given poison awareness talks for the past eight years.

After noticing the inhalant problem in the community, she added inhalant abuse to the discussions. In a letter to ACE, she mentions that,

"Children in our community were discovering this practice out of sheer 'boredom' and/or curiosity. Being a small town situated directly between major drug related cities, we have our share of problems. This program is very important to myself and our community and I will continute as long as I possible can."

This is another outstanding example of how individuals can really make a difference in their own communties. Great job, Kathleen!

Kim Manlove - A Parent Educating Parents

On February 28th, Hamilton Southeastern Schools presented a parents-only seminar about inhalants and prescription drug abuse in the home. One of the speakers at the meeting was Mr. Kim Manlove, who lost his son David to inhalant abuse.

The community forum went wonderfully, he said. There were about 175 parents present at the meeting. For the section on inhalants, they showed a new video as well as a PowerPoint presentation. Information was provided about the signs and symptoms of inhalant use, the associated paraphernalia, and the physical evidence.

He explained what a revelation it is for parents to realize just how many household and commonly-used products can be abused. “You don’t see parents saying, ‘I had no idea!’ about drugs, cocaine or alcohol,” he continued, “Inhalants are not on their radar screen.”

The questions from parents were varied, from wanting to know what specifically to look for in their child, to wondering what it was that drives kids to 'huff'. Although many believe that their kids are safe, he warns parents that there are products in their houses that have the potential to be abused.

Also speaking was a recovering inhalant abuser, who described his relationship with inhalants and why he used them, and what finally brought him to seek help.

One notable demonstration of Kim's that the audience will remember used a mirror and computer duster to show its potentially hazardous effects. He sprayed the mirror with an upside-down can of computer duster to show the frost that covers it. This revealed how cold the chemical inside can be, in order to further explain that it's not just compressed air. Frostbite around the nose and mouth can be one of the symptoms of abusing computer dusters.

We're glad that Hamilton Southeastern took such a proactive approach in educating the community and hope that more schools reach out in the future.

Kim Manlove also maintains a blog for Parent Partners to spread his prevention message even further.

Love Your Child - Be Informed

Thanks to the efforts of Janna Zuber, the sign in front of
Bowie High School in Maryland now displays a message urging parents to visit our main site, http://www.inhalant.org/.


This is just in time for National Inhalants and Poisons Awareness Week, and it would be great for other communities to follow this lead and post something publicly.

Kentucky and NIPAW

The Bowling Green Daily News, in anticipation of NIPAW (National Inhalant and Poisons Awareness Week), ran a story about inhalant abuse yesterday. In studies, one in four Kentucky youths have tried inhalants at some point in their lives. Amy Hutchinson, the coordinator of the Monroe County Alliance for Inhalant Prevention, stated that

“Right now our goal is to do all we can to educate parents and students about the harmful and even deadly effects the poisons in these products can have on the brain and body. It’s a serious cause for concern that not many people know about. Plus it is considered a ‘gateway’ drug, which means that it often leads to the use of illegal drugs."

On teaching parents about inhalant abuse in their children:

"We encourage parents to educate themselves; to learn what is being used and how these products are being used. They need know what is readily available in their own homes. We also urge them to focus on safety when they talk to their kids. Inhalants are not drugs. They are poisons and toxins and should be described as such. Users can die the first, 10th or 100th time a product is misused as an inhalant. Even if they’ve done it before, there is no way to know how the next time will affect them.”

Monroe County is one of two counties in Kentucky that has received federal funding for its willingness to address the problem of inhalant abuse.

New Virginia Inhalant Prevention Coalition Chair

Marta Szuba, the current CADRE coordinator, has been given a chair position at the Virginia Inhalant Prevention Coalition. Other members on the board include representatives from the Virginia Department of Health, the Virginia State Board of Education, poison control, and the governor's office.


The Prevention Coalition is holding a town hall meeting on March 11th featuring Sgt. Jeff Williams, as well as an Inhalant Institute on March 12th to educate local residents about inhalant abuse. They will also be releasing a new inhalant curriculum to be used in all elementary, middle, and high schools in Virginia.

Photo courtesy of the News Leader.

Drug Prevention

February 10-16 is the National Drug Prevention and Education Week, introduced by Senators Joseph R. Biden, Jr. and Charles Grassley from Delaware and Iowa, respectively. Both senators hold seats on the Senate Caucus on International Narcotics Control. From Senator Grassley:

"This resolution urges communities to engage in the dialogue that will help stop drug use before it ever starts. The more people talk about and understand the dangers of drugs, the better off we'll be."

This week is also a good time for parents to discuss inhalant use with their children if they have not already done so.

The Community Alliance for Drug-Resistance Education

This organization, more commonly known as CADRE, has implemented in a program in several Virginia high schools to educate teachers and other support staff about inhalant abuse . This is a part of a large community organization to increase awareness about the issue. On February 8th, there will be a Teen Council Meeting in Staunton, VA. On March 11th, there is an Inhalant Abuse Town Hall Meeting at Wilson High School. The following day will be the Virginia State Inhalant Abuse Seminar in Staunton.

It's great that high schools are interested in learning more about inhalants and how to intervene when the students are using them. CADRE is a branch of the Virginia Inhalant Abuse Coalition, which works with the Department of Health, Board of Education, and the Poison Control in Virginia to push for more education and legislation about inhalants.