Inhalants - How Is It Taken?

How Is It Taken?

The vapors from inhalants are deliberately breathed in through the nose or the mouth of the user. Sometimes the substances need to be heated in order to release the intoxicating vapors.

A young homeless boy in Cambodia is shown inhaling glue from a plastic bag. Some children sniff glue to ease the hunger and loneliness they feel. AP/Wide World Photos.
A young homeless boy in Cambodia is shown inhaling glue from a plastic bag. Some children sniff glue to ease the hunger and loneliness they feel. AP/Wide World Photos.

NIDA and the Partnership for a Drug-Free America describe several methods by which inhalants are consumed. They include:

  • sniffing or snorting fumes from the container in which the inhalant is sold, such as glue from a can or a tube
  • inhaling fumes sprayed directly from an aerosol can through the nose or mouth
  • bagging, which involves holding an inhalant-filled plastic or paper bag over the mouth and nose, and then breathing in the fumes; sometimes, the entire bag is placed over the head, increasing the risk of suffocation
  • huffing, which involves soaking a cloth with an inhalant, placing it over the nose and mouth, and then breathing in the vapors
  • inhaling substances from balloons (often the method used when sniffing nitrous oxide) or empty soft drink cans (often the method used when sniffing paint or paint thinner)
  • painting the fingernails with an inhalant such as correction fluid and then sniffing the substance from the nails
  • spreading the inside of a painter's face mask with a toxic substance and inhaling. The substance is usually glue because it is thick enough to stick to the mask.

"Bagging" is the riskiest of all inhalant methods because the concentration, or strength, of the fumes inside the bag increases to extremely high levels. "Sniffed" fumes are diluted somewhat by the air, delivering lower amounts of dangerous vapors. "Huffed" fumes are more concentrated than sniffed fumes but less concentrated than bagged fumes.

Once inhaled, the chemicals from inhalants move into the lungs. From the lungs, they easily enter the bloodstream. Then, the blood quickly carries the toxinsHarmful, poisonous, or capable of causing death. throughout the body.