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Study Shows Kids Back Abusing Inhalants
> 4/24/2006 12:36:49 PM

A little while back we wrote of the re-emergence of inhalants in the news. Today, the Partnership for a Drug Free America reports that a new national survey found that 1 in 5 teenagers have abused inhalants in their lifetime. There is other important results that show a drop-off in teens appreciation for the dangers associated with inhalants abuse.

64 percent of teenagers in 2005 agree strongly that inhalants can kill you, down 19 percent from 2001.

77 percent of teenagers in 2005 agree strongly that inhalants can cause brain damage, down nine percent from 2001.

The partnership sees these new trends as a result of "generational forgetting," and they are probably right on point. There was a tremendous push in the 90's toward educating children about the risks associated with abusing inhalents. Children who are in middle school now would have missed out on most of this education entirely.

What was also disconcerting about the recent survey was that parents seem to be unaware of the issue either. Only 5 percent of parents reported that they thought their child had tried inhalants. That presents a 15 percent disconnect between parent perceptions and reality.

The good news is that the Partnership has already set into motion there plans for a new campaign. TV and radio spots will work as part of a mass media component, while in school educational outreach will be expanded. Parents will also be a focus as some of the Partnership's spots include testimony from parents who have lost a child to the abuse of inhalants.

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