HHS HealthBeat (November 27, 2007)

Huffing and suicidality

From the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, I’m Ira Dreyfuss with HHS HealthBeat.

Huffing – deliberately inhaling fumes from household products as a way to get high – can lead to organ damage, convulsions, even death.

And a researcher at the University of Denver highlights another risk.

Stacey Freedenthal examined incarcerated teens, and found a third of them huffed.

Freedenthal also found that the more severe their huffing problem, the greater the likelihood that they considered or attempted suicide. The study in the journal Drug and Alcohol Dependence was supported by the National Institutes of Health.

``I would advise parents and teens to take huffing very seriously – to not view it as something that’s innocent, or that this is just what kids do.’’ (7 seconds) 

Freedenthal can’t tell if huffing caused suicidality or indicated a deeper problem. But she says the risks she found in incarcerated teens are likely also in other teens.

Learn more at hhs.gov.

HHS HealthBeat is a production of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. I’m Ira Dreyfuss.

Last revised: May, 26 2008