KnowYourself

KnowYourself Self-Assessment
Alcohol, Tobacco, and Drug Use

Is Someone You Know an Inhalant Abuser?

Directions

Indicate which symptoms or behaviors seem to be present:

Yes	No	Unusual breath odor or chemical odor on clothing.
Yes	No	Slurred or disoriented speech.
Yes	No	Drunk, dazed, or dizzy appearance.
Yes	No	Signs of paint or other products where they wouldn't normally be, such as on the face or fingers.
Yes	No	Red or runny eyes or nose.
Yes	No	Spots and/or sores around the mouth.
Yes	No	Nausea and/or loss of appetite.
Yes	No	Anxiety, excitability, irritability, or restlessness.
Yes	No	Sitting with a pen or marker near nose.
Yes	No	Constantly smelling clothing sleeves.
Yes	No	Hiding rags, clothes, or empty containers of the potentially abused products in closets and other places.

Scoring

If some or all these symptoms or behaviors are evident, then the person may be an inhalant abuser. There is no typical profile of an inhalant abuser. Victims are represented by both sexes and all socioeconomic groups throughout the U.S.

Information

Inhalant abuse can kill. It can kill suddenly, and it can kill those who sniff for the first time. Every year, young people in this country die of inhalant abuse. Hundreds suffer severe consequences, including permanent brain damage, loss of muscle control, and destruction of the heart, blood, kidney, liver, and bone marrow. Today more than 1,000 different products are commonly abused. The National Institute on Drug Abuse reported in 1996 that one in five American teenagers have used inhalants to get high.

For additional information, contact National Inhalant Prevention Coalition at 1-800-269-4237 or on the World Wide Web at www.inhalants.org, National Drug and Alcohol Treatment Referral Service at 1-800-662-HELP, and the National aringhouse for Alcohol and Drug Information at 1-800-729-6686 or www.health.org.

Source

This assessment was developed from information provided by A Parent's Guide to Preventing Inhalant Abuse, U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission available at: http://www.cpsc.gov

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Judith A. Baker