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Solvent abuse can kill warns Health Promotion Agency
The Health Promotion Agency for Northern Ireland (HPA) is
advising parents and retailers to become more aware of the
dangers of solvent abuse or Volatile Substance Abuse (VSA),
as a report released today details the most recent number
of deaths associated with VSA.
Across the UK the number of VSA deaths in 2003 fell to 51,
the lowest annual total since 1980 but in Northern Ireland
they increased from one death in 2002 to five in 2003.
Victoria
Creasy, Senior Manager for Public Health at the HPA said: “Although
there is no obvious pattern to the VSA related deaths and
figures fluctuate from year to
year, since 1971 there have been 82 deaths in Northern Ireland
associated with VSA.
“Experimentation
with volatile substances usually starts around the age
of 13 or 14 and sometimes even in the
pre-teen years. Parents and retailers need to be more aware
of the types of everyday household substances that can be
lethal and of the warning signs that a young person may be
misusing them. The HPA has a number of resources which offer
support and advice to parents and retailers about VSA.”
VSA is the deliberate inhalation of any kind of volatile
substance in order to become intoxicated. Anything that contains
a volatile hydrocarbon has the potential to be misused, including
everyday household items such as cigarette lighter refill
cans, certain kinds of glue and aerosol sprays such as deodorants,
hairsprays and air fresheners.
Angeline
McTier, Northern Ireland Project Manager at Re-Solv, the
society
for the prevention of solvent and volatile substance
abuse, said: “Sniffing is a hidden issue overshadowed
by underage drinking, illegal drugs and smoking. However,
when we take into account the availability of abusable products
and the reported number of deaths from this activity, ‘sniffing’ is
an issue society cannot afford to ignore. Parents and young
people need to be aware that sniffing has the very real potential
of killing on the first experiment.”
END
Notes to the editors
The HPA has produced a number of resources which offer guidance to parents
and retailers and can be accessed via the HPA website: www.healthpromotionagency.org.uk/Work/Drugs/menu.htm.
The report, Trends in Death Associated with Abuse of
Volatile Substances 1971-2003, by the Division of
Community Health Sciences at St. George’s, University
of London, is available on: www.vsareport.org from 09:00 Wednesday 20 July.
For information,
a visit or advice and literature about Re-Solv –Tel:
028 9070 2493 or Freephone 0808 800 2345; Website: www.re-solv.org.
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