NEW DELHI, Apr 14: Nearly 42 per cent of street children who resorted to substance abuse feel inhaling fluids or adhesives gives them a sense of boldness while 35 per cent say it drives away hunger, according to a new study by AIIMS.
The study — Inhalant use among street children in Delhi: A Situations Assessment — by National Drug Dependence Treatment Centre (NDDTC) of the hospital also says that 43 per cent admitted that the abuse rendered them emotionally numb while over half said it relieved pain.
“Around 42 per cent said that it induces boldness and as many as 35 per cent said that it drives away hunger. Those saying that they use inhalants for enjoyment was only two per cent whereas only one per cent of children said they use it for time pass,” the study said.
It also came to light during the study that a whopping 83 per cent used eraser fluids whereas around 34 per cent used glue. Those who consume petroleum products constitute around three per cent of the total lot.
Such fluids are sold in set of two bottles with one having thinner and eraser and other having whitener. Those who used glues were reported of consuming around two tubes per day, the study said.
Dr Anju Dhawan of NDDTC, one of the co-investigators of the study, said the purpose of the study was to find reasons for the consumption of such substances among the inhalant users and to further develop the better intervention methodologies to improve quality of their life.
In a disturbing trend, the study said it found that around 33 per cent of the street children use inhalants as high as 24 times a day.
“More than half of the street children (55 per cent) were found using the inhalants from 1-3 times a day. Those using it 4-6 times were in minority (13 per cent). However, about one- third were reported of using it throughout the day (24 times),” the study said.
The study also found that 47 per cent of the children had some degree of memory loss and nearly 48 per cent reported of their changed appearance due to use of inhalants. Sixty-seven per cent reported weight loss.
It said the street children were indulging in substance abuse to “enable them to cope up with the hardships and emotional trauma of street life”.
“Many reasons for popularity of inhalants among street children were reported. It was reported that inhalants use enables them to survive hardships of the street life.
“Inhalant is used to cope with the physical pain, emotional trauma and it gives courage to work and face law enforcement agencies. Moreover, inhalants are cheaper and easily available,” observed the study.
Besides NDDTC, various NGOs were also roped in to conduct study including Butterflies, CHETNA, Don-Bosco Ashalayam, Prayas, Project Concern International and Salam Balak Trust. (PTI)
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