Names: Solvents, aerosols, nitrites (poppers), nitrous oxide (giggle gas, whippets), trichloroethane, sniff.
Type: Sedative/hypnotic, anesthetic.
Forms: Hydrocarbon solvents as liquid or gas. Combinations: Anti-freeze, gasoline, degreaser.
Windshield washers, foam dispensers, acetone. Cleaning fluid, spot remover or shoe polish, nail polish remover. Gasoline, household cements, lacquer thinners, lighter fluid, model cements. Airplane glue, plastic cements, rubber tire patching cement. Paint and varnish removers, paint brush cleaners, household waxes. Typewriter correcting fluids and thinners, general household cleaners. Floor wax removers, suede cleaners, liquid incense, room deodorizer.
Usage: Inhaling gas or vapor from balloon, paper or plastic bag. Sniffing vapor directly from container.
Inhaling saturated material placed over mouth. Heating and inhaling higher vapor concentrations. Swallowing solvent mixed with alcoholic beverages. Injecting into bloodstream.
Spraying aerosols directly into mouth.
Legal Status: Legal. Amyl nitrate by prescription.

WHAT IT FEELS LIKE

Dizzying rush. Alcohol-like intoxication. Distortion of senses and perceptions, delusions of grandeur. Dizziness, euphoria, weightlessness. Dissociation from environment. Silliness, awkward movement, muscle weakness. Altered speech, slowed reactions, altered judgment. Sensitivity to light, double vision, dilated pupils, ringing in ears. Drowsiness, sleep, anesthesia, depression, hallucinations, delirium, disorientation.

WHAT IT DOES

To Your Mind: In most cases, depresses central nervous system. Nitrites stimulate.
To Your Body: Interrupts and increases heart rate, alters breathing.
Special Characteristics: Cheap and easily available, solvents are often used by adolescents who knowingly risk life-threatening effects to bolster self-esteem or gain peer approval. Nitrite blackout results from combination with other drugs.

HOW IT CAN HURT YOU

Toxic effects of inhalation of combined substances. Bizarre behavior. Severe depression, toxic psychosis. Pains in chest, muscles and joints, hangover, amnesia. Coma, seizures, brain damage, paranoia, nerve damage, river and kidney damage, respiratory tract damage, accumulation of body lead levels. Bone marrow deterioration, blood abnormalities, tremors, sleep disorders. Fatigue, loss of appetite, bronchial tube spasm, 'glue sniffer's rash' (sores on nose and mouth). Nosebleeds. Nausea, diarrhea, eye/nose irritation, glaucoma, blood cell damage.

Death can come from "SSD' (sudden sniffing death), plastic bag suffocation, bizarre and reckless behavior, driving under the influence, poisoning of users and small children, suicide or respiratory depression. With fluorocarbons, death may be caused by "airway freezing' suffocation.

WHEN TO GET HELP

_ Do you think about how and when you're going to use drugs again?
_ Is your work or school performance affected?
_ Are you having problems with family and friends?
_ Is your drug use beyond what you can afford?
_ Do you use other drugs in addition to inhalants?
One "yes" and your common sense tells you ifs time
to get smart about drugs and the rest of your life.

FACT:  Small amounts of inhalants can be instantly fatal.

ON THE STREET, OFF THE SHELF, OR FROM YOUR PHARMACY

--WHEREVER YOU GET YOUR DRUGS--

BEWARE AND TAKE CARE