Whos using Inhalants?
One possible reason for the increased use of volatile solvents is that more girls are joining boys in sniffing solvents. “The rates of solvent use for males and females have been converging over the past 20 years,” Dr. Beauvais says. Recent studies in New York State and Texas report that males are using solvents at only slightly higher rates than females are. Among Native Americans, whose solvent abuse rates are the highest of any ethnic group, lifetime prevalence rates for males and females were nearly identical, according to 1991 NIDA data. There is a public perception that inhalant abuse is more common among Hispanic youth than among other ethnic groups. However, recent surveys have not found high rates of abuse by Hispanics in all geographic areas, Dr. Beauvais points out. “It appears that rates for Hispanics may be related to socioeconomic conditions,” he says. “As those conditions vary so will the levels of solvent use. Hispanic youths in poor barrio environments may use solvents
