New National Inhalant Data: 68.4% are under 18 for first use

Yesterday, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration released the results from the 2010 National Survey on Drug Use and Health. The full findings can be accessed here.

Interesting new stat about inhalant abuse:

• In 2010, there were 793,000 persons aged 12 or older who had used inhalants for the first time within the past 12 months, which was similar to the numbers in prior years since 2002;
  


• 68.4 percent were under age 18 when they first used.
  


• The average age at first use among recent initiates aged 12 to 49 was also similar in 2009 and 2010 (16.9 and 16.3 years, respectively).

The Latest National Survey Reveals Inhalant Abuse Statistics

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAHMSA) recently released a national survey on substance abuse from 2008 to 2009. The survey revealed that substance abuse has generally increased, and inhalants were particularly popular for first-time substance abusers.

Youth Statistics

- Inhalant abuse rate has not decreased among youths since 2002.

- Inhalants are popular first-time drugs. About 3.1 million people aged over 12 used an illicit drug for the first time in 2009. Among them, a startling 9.8 percent chose inhalants as their first illicit drug.

- Youths also make up the majority of inhalant abusers. In 2009, 0.8 million people aged 12 or older used inhalants, and 67.9 percent of them were under age 18 when they first used inhalants.

- 10.0 percent of all youths aged 12 to 17 were illicit drug users in 2009, and 1.0 percent of them used inhalants.

- Among 12 or 13 year olds, 1.4 percent used inhalants, and 0.8 percent of 14, 15, 16, or 17 year olds used inhalants.

- The average age of first-time inhalant abuser remains under the age of 17 since 2008. In 2008, the average age was 15.9, and in 2009, it was 16.9 years.

Adult Statistics

- Among adults aged 26 or older, 6.3% percent were current illicit drug users in 2009, and inhalants were used by 0.1 percent of them.

Overall Dependency

- About 164,000 people aged 12 or older developed dependence on inhalants in 2009.

Statistical information as well as graphical representation for this report are accredited to SAMHSA's full report, which is available here. Please feel free to check it out for more detailed information on inhalant abuse.

New National Inhalant Data- NSDUH

Last week, the results of the 2008 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) were released.

The annual survey is sponsored by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) and is considered the “primary source of information on the use of illicit drugs, alcohol, and tobacco in the civilian, noninstitutionalized population of the United States aged 12 years old or older.” It surveys approximately 67,500 persons each year.

From the findings:

• From 2002-2008 there were decreases in the use of inhalants (from 0.5 to 0.3%)
  
  
• There was no significant change in the number of inhalant initiates from 2007 to 2008, but the 2008 estimate was significantly below the number in 2003 (871,000), 2004 (857,000), and 2005 (877,000).
  
  
• However, there was a significant decrease in the average age at first use among recent initiates aged 12 to 49 from 2007 (17.1 years) to 2008 (15.9 years).
  
  
• In 2008, 9.7% of respondents, aged 12 or older, reported inhalants as their first drug.
  
  
• In 2008, there were 729,000 persons aged 12 or older who had used inhalants for the first time within the past 12 months; 70.4% were under age 18 when they first used.
  
  
• In 2008: 1.1% of youths aged 12 to 17 used inhalants; 1.2% of 12-13 year olds; 1.3% of 14-15 year olds; 0.7% of 16-17 year olds
  
  
• From 2002 to 2008, there were declines in young adults' past month inhalant use (from 0.5 to 0.3%)
  
  
• In 2008, among adults aged 26 or older, 0.1% have used inhalants
  
  
• Among youths aged 12 to 17 in 2008, males and females had similar rates of current use of inhalants (1.1% for both).
  
  
• In 2008, inhalants came in 5th for the specific drug categories with the largest number of recent initiates among persons aged 12 or older: inhalants (0.7 million)

The table below compares the 2002-2008 data from both the NSDUH and Monitoring the Future (MTF) national studies.