Howard Wolfe is the Director of the New England Inhalant Abuse Prevention Coalition. He started working on inhalant abuse with the Massachusetts Department of Public Health in 1994, as a founding member of Massachusetts Inhalant Abuse Task Force. The task force developed an educational campaign called, “A Breath Away,” in response to a dramatic increase in incidents of inhalant abuse in Massachusetts in the early 1990’s.

When Prevention Fails or Comes Too Late:
By: Harvey Weiss the Executive Director of the National Inhalant Prevention Coalition

At a recent meeting I mentioned data included in this and our last UPDATE and was challenged about the data’s accuracy. This sort of reminded me of the old Rodney Dangerfield line, “I can’t get no respect.” Or should I say, inhalants can’t get no respect!

WWW.AARONHUNT.ORG

On the evening of April 12, 2010 while riding in a car with 2 other people, Aaron Hunt chased a dangerous high inhaling propane fumes. His heart stopped and his brain was without oxygen for around 10 minutes before rescue workers arrived.Aaron was put on life support when he arrived at the hospital. After numerous tests, it was determined that there was no brain activity. On April 16, 2010, Aaron was removed from life support.

Fast Facts about Inhalant Abuse*

- The Average age of first time users was 16.9 years.
- 67.9 percent of first time users were under age 18 when they first used.
- 813,000 people aged 12+ used inhalants for the first time in the last year.
- Inhalant Abuse (Huffing, Dusting, Sniffing) - can kill... users can die the first or 100th time they use an inhalant

ACE would like to extend a big THANK YOU to the Eastern Aerosol Association (EAA) for their kind contribution.

We would also like to thank EAA for the work they are doing in the community in raising awareness of inhalant abuse via their efforts in minor league baseball.

Once again THANK YOU, and keep up the good work!

Photo Courtesy of Spray Technology & Marketing Magazine

Nearly 22 million school days are lost annually due to the common cold, according to the Centers for Disease Control. With cold and flu season upon us, the Alliance for Consumer Education (ACE) is educating children on simple steps they can take to keep themselves safe and healthy.

Congratulations to Substance Abuse Free Environment Inc. (SAFE) for being selected as one of the recipients of the 2010 National Exemplary Award for Innovative Substance Abuse Prevention Programs, Practices and Policies! SAFE received the award for its inhalant abuse prevention initiative.

SAFE began its education efforts in the Virginia community of Chesterfield in 1999. Though inhalant abuse was not a well-known issue, data showed inhalants were abused at an alarming rate among local eighth graders.

The Alliance for Consumer Education’s superhero, Ace Clean, will be appearing with Marvel Entertainment’s and Paramount Pictures’ Iron Man in Times Square this Friday, Oct 1^st.

During morning rush hour, Iron Man and Ace Clean will be demonstrating proper hand washing with the assistance of The Association for Professionals in Infection Control & Epidemiology (APIC). The event will also broadcast on the Reuters and NASDAQ video billboards. Local schoolchildren and passersby will be able to pose with Iron Man and Ace Clean for pictures.

In honor of National Food Safety Education Month, the Partnership for Food Safety Education (PFSE) is revealing 4 myths in 4 weeks. 

This week's myth is: I use bleach and water to sanitize my countertops and the more bleach I use the more bacteria I kill. Please click here to get the facts on why this myth is false. 

It's time to go back to school! Make sure you teach your children simple steps to keep themselves healthy. 

Not sure where to start? Click here to read the Association for Professionals in Infection Control & Epidemiology's (APIC) latest news on preventing infections in schools.