Latest information and statistics on volatile substance use

Volatile substance use (VSU) involves sniffing substances that give off fumes at room temperature such as petrol, paint, glue or deodorants [48063]. They are also called ‘inhalants’ because of the way people use them by inhaling the fumes through the nose or mouth. Absorbing these substances into the lungs affects different parts of the body such as the kidneys, the brain and the heart [48063][41612].

Most volatile substances such as solvents and aerosol sprays, are depressant drugs that slow down the central nervous system [41612]. Short-term effects include slurred speech, lack of coordination, dizziness and euphoria [48063][41611]. Sniffing volatile substances, particularly butane, propane and aerosols, can cause sudden death [30967]. This is known as sudden sniffing death, a syndrome where a lack of oxygen and an unexpected event that stimulates an adrenalin release causes heart failure [41611][30967]. Sudden sniffing death can happen to a first-time user who is otherwise healthy. VSU can also cause a person to lose consciousness, increasing the risk of death by suffocation.

Unlike other forms of drug use, the products used in VSU are readily available in common household and commercial products, posing a particular risk for young people [41611]. Typically, use of volatile substances is initiated at a young age (around 12 years, and sometimes younger), which has implications for the developing brain and long-term health [38141][32216]. Sniffing volatile substances repeatedly is also associated with damage to the peripheral nervous system (resulting in numbness and limb weakness), as well as damage to the respiratory system, injury to the digestive tract, kidney damage and anaemia [41612]. Exposure to toluene[1] through sniffing petrol in adolescence has been shown to be associated with impaired growth for both height and weight and a ‘failure to thrive’ [32216]. Excessive harmful inhalant use can also lead to permanent acquired brain injury [32216][29075][24947]. Petrol is one of the most dangerous volatile substances to sniff which can result in damage to the brain [24947][2628]. Long-term abstinence from inhalants, however, may allow recovery of normal brain function, where encephalopathy (damage or disease that affects the brain) from lead poisoning is not present [24947].

Extent of VSU use among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people

The 2018-19 National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Survey (NATSIHS) found that 0.9% of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people aged 15 years and over reported using petrol and other inhalants in the last 12 months[2] [42101]. In 2022-23, 0.7% of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander clients aged 10 years and over identified volatile solvents as the main drug they sought treatment for in publicly funded alcohol and other drugs (AOD) services [43453].

An overall decline in VSU in communities has been reported, with one study showing that in 17 Aboriginal communities, the total number of people sniffing petrol has fallen, from 647 in 2005-06 to 78 in 2013-14, a reduction of 88% [31839]. This decrease in prevalence of sniffing has been associated with the replacement of regular unleaded petrol with low aromatic fuel (LAF)[3].

A follow-up study on the effects of LAF found that in 25 Indigenous communities, for which there is comparable data, the total estimated number of people sniffing petrol fell from 453 in 2006 to 22 in 2018, a decline of 95% [38141]. The number of people sniffing petrol in these communities represented just under 1% of the estimated Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander populations in the respective communities aged 5-39 years.

While overall the number of people using volatile substances is small, the issue of VSU remains a potential for concern in some regions where opportunistic or casual sniffing of petrol and use of other volatile substances such as deodorants have been reported [38141].

Hospitalisation

In 2017-19, the crude hospitalisation rate for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people due to volatile solvent use (based on principal diagnosis) was 0.1 per 1,000 [42101]. The crude rates of hospitalisation for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people due to mental and behavioural disorders from the use of volatile substances and poisoning due to the toxic effect of volatile solvents were both 0.1 per 1,000 [42101].

Mortality

The systematic collection of VSU associated mortality data is very limited due to the practice of listing the medical explanation for death rather than the use of volatile substances as a cause [4642]. For example, the death of someone who sniffs petrol chronically may be recorded as ‘end-stage renal failure’, not ‘petrol sniffing’. This practice has most likely resulted in VSU mortality and morbidity rates being underestimated.

[1] Toluene is the primary volatile solvent in misused products.

[2] This estimate has a high margin of error and should be interpreted with caution [42101].

[3] LAF is a type of fuel with less aromatic hydrocarbons than regular unleaded petrol, that does not cause intoxication when inhaled.