Doctors are warning about the rise of a dangerous trend among children that sees them inhale toxic fumes from nail polish and marker pens to get ‘high’.
Videos showing people ‘chroming’, or ‘huffing’, have racked up tens of millions of views on TikTok — with many users talking about being ‘addicted’.
In one clip posted to social media, a girl can be seen sniffing the fumes from a a roll-on deodorant while walking around her home.
The concerning trend among teenagers was reported by doctors at the American Academy of Pediatrics annual conference in Orlando, Florida.
They are urging other doctors and parents to be sure they are aware of the trend in order to better protect children.
The above shows a young girl sniffing on a roll-on deodorant. She appears to be trying chroming
Esra Haynes, pictured, suffered from a cardiac arrest after inhaling aerosol deodorant fumes – called chroming – and died days later from irreparable brain damage
In rare cases, the habit could also be fatal — with a 13-year-old girl in Australia having died last year after inhaling chemicals from a deodorant can.
In March this year, an 11-year-old boy from the UK went into cardiac arrest and died after trying chroming while at a sleepover at a friend’s house.
Dr Keerthi Krishna, a pediatric researcher at Cohen’s Children’s Medical Center who led the research, said: ‘What is particularly concerning about chroming is that it uses everyday household items that are easily accessible to teens.
‘The covert nature of these items means that parents and teachers are less likely to detect the behavior, significantly increasing the risk of repeated usage and addiction among adolescents.’
In their research, to be presented at the conference, the team analyzed 109 videos from social media of chroming which had 25million views.
They found that permanent markers were the most common chroming item, appearing in 31 percent of the videos.
Air dusters were the second most common, in 17 percent of videos, followed by nail polish, 12 percent, paint thinner, gasoline and spray deodorant, 11 percent for each.
About six percent of the videos analyzed also showed users sniffing hair spray.
More than half of the videos referenced repeated usage or addiction.
Permanent markers contain chemicals which evaporate rapidly once the pens are used in order to help ink dry quickly.
If someone inhales the fumes from the marker, however, these chemicals can enter the bloodstream and then the brain — causing feelings of dizziness and euphoria.
Scientists have suggested that this happens because the chemicals ‘slow down’ the nervous system giving someone a ‘high’.
Tommie-lee Gracie Billington, 11, (pictured) died in an incident at a home in Greenset Close, Lancaster, UK, after trying chroming while at a sleepover
They warn users could also suffer from slurred speech, hallucinations, nausea and vomiting as a result of the inhalation.
In some cases, it could also cause a heart attack or permanent damage to organs like the brain if someone has trouble breathing.
The National Survey on Drug Abuse and Health suggests that half-a-million children aged 12 to 18 in the US have used an inhalant.
The National Institutes of Health says online that chroming is ‘deliberate inhalation of volatile substances and can cause serious harm to the integrity of the central nervous system and disrupt normal trajectories of psychological, emotional and neurobiological development’.
In their presentation, the authors are set to conclude that parents and pediatricians need to be aware of this trend and its dangers and say social media companies should do more to prevent the spread of such harmful content.
They will present their findings Saturday at the Orange County Convention Center during the American Academy of Pediatrics 2024 National Conference and Exhibition.
