Alarming New Inhalant Data in Pennsylvania

Via The Sentinel in Pennsylvania:

The results of the Pennsylvania Youth Survey have been released- and reveal that “inhalant use is a problem among middle school students in Cumberland and Perry Counties.”

Percentage of 8^th grader that have used inhalants at least once:

·         Perry County: 14%

·         Cumberland County: 18%

Percentage of 8^th graders that reported using inhalants in the past 30 days:

·         Perry County: 8%

·         Cumberland County: 14%

Comparatively, 6% of 8^th graders in Pennsylvania and 3% of 8^th graders in the US reported using inhalants in the past 30 days.

Inhalant Abuse on the Increase in Pennsylvania

Via the Courier Express in Pennsylvania:


The Clearfield-Jefferson Drug & Alcohol Commission Drug-Free Communities Coalition has expressed concern about a spike in inhalant abuse in their community.

The 2011 Pennsylvania Youth Survey revealed that in Clearfield County, 8.5% of 8th graders had used inhalants in the past 30 days (the state’s average is 6%) and that both the eighth and tenth graders use was higher than the national rate. In Jefferson County, 10th and 12th graders reported higher use compared to national findings.

Inhalant Abuse Increases in Pennsylvania County

Via The Progress in Pennsylvania:

The 2009 results of the Pennsylvania Youth Survey were recently released. The survey is administered every two years to students in grades six, eight, 10 and 12.

The survey revealed that inhalant abuse increased by 3% in Jefferson County from 2007-2009.

" In Jefferson County, aside from alcohol, students also reported marijuana (9.4 percent) and inhalants (5.9 percent) as the most used drugs in the past 30 days. While marijuana had a slight decline from the 2007 survey, inhalant use rose by more than 3 percent in 2009."

Inhalant Abuse Increases in Pennsylvania

Via Lancaster Online in Pennsylvania:

Results of the PA Youth Survey show that drug use is down in nearly every category for Lampeter-Strasburg students in grades eight, 10 and 12. However, “the sole exception was inhalant use.”

• The average of use of inhalants in by students in all three grades jumped from 9.8% in 2007 to 10.3 percent in 2009.

Inhalant Abuse Declines at PA High School

From Lancaster Online.com in Pennsylvania:

Some encouraging news from Manheim Township High School’s results in the 2009 Pennsylvania Youth Survey

Inhalant use declined from 3.7% in '07 to 2.4% last year (this just under the county average of 2.7%).