Epidemiology of Inhalant Abuse - Archives - National Institute on ...

TABLE 7. <strong>Inhalant</strong> use by 12th grade males and females in rural and
urban towns (values in percentages).
Rural Rural
< 2,500 2,500-10,000
Urban
> 10,000
Males 16.0 19.2 14.8
Females 12.1 10.9 10.9
Total group 14.0 15.0 12.9
(n = 3,194) (n = 5,293) (n = 5,938)
SOURCE: Peters et al. (1992). Data from The American Drug and
Alcohol Survey.
the rate <strong>of</strong> inhalant use still was high, but it had dropped considerably.
There probably was a local epidemic at the time <strong>of</strong> his 1977 study.
In order to mount timely prevention and intervention efforts, it is critical that
such epidemics be detected early in their course. This means that schools
and communities should monitor use <strong>of</strong> various substances, including
inhalants, by surveying their students on a yearly basis. With most drugs,
the results from one year to the next are not likely to change greatly unless
major prevention efforts are made. That is not true for inhalants. When
there is a local epidemic, the best approach known at this time seems to be
heavy and continuous adult monitoring <strong>of</strong> the behavior <strong>of</strong> the youth in the
age cohort that is involved. Programs should increase supervised activities
outside <strong>of</strong> school, reduce unsupervised time, and emphasize reduction <strong>of</strong>
opportunities for children to “sneak away” to use inhalants. Some Native-
American tribes also have helped to reduce the problem in their communities
by instituting “parent patrols.” Parents form patrols that regularly check out
the places where children could hide to use inhalants together.
Dropouts and <strong>Inhalant</strong> Use
While the decline from 8th to 12th grade in lifetime prevalence for inhalant
use discussed above suggests that youth who use inhalants when they are
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