Inhalant Abuse & Recovery Support Group

The practice of inhaling such substances is sometimes colloquially referred to as huffing or chroming; or, more formally, solvent abuse.

Solvents are some of the most dangerous substances used recreationally, and can cause serious damage to the brain and central nervous system, and are generally only used by young substance abusers or as a desperate last resort for financially deprived drug addicts. While not regulated in the United States under the Controlled Substances Act, many states have placed restrictions on the sale of these products to minors.

Inhalant abuse is relatively common among children and adolescents.

Inhalants are readily available, inexpensive, and easy to conceal. Therefore, they are increasingly popular with young people and are, for many, one of the first substances abused.

In the United States the extent of the inhalant problem among children and adolescents was, at first, virtually unrecognized by the general public. However, an event in early 1999 called national attention to this severe problem. Five high school girls were killed in a car accident outside Philadelphia, and the coroner's report showed that four of the five, including the driver, had ingested "significant" amounts of a computer keyboard cleaner. Since this event, there has been an increased awareness of the threat of inhalant abuse.

Gasoline inhalation became common on Russian ships following attempts to limit the supply of alcohol to crew in the 1980s. The documentary Children Underground depicts the huffing of Aurolac by Romanian homeless children.