Some common ones are butane (lighter and aerosol gas), some glues, nail varnish/ remover and petrol.

	Feel light headed
	Feel a false sense of confidence
	Laugh a lot (often at things which aren’t that funny)
	Say things you wouldn’t normally
	Become over friendly and too trusting of others
	Become stupid and silly
	Feel sick and throw up
	Have double vision
	Lose your balance and make you unsteady on your feet
	Cry and get upset
	Feel over sensitive to harmless comments
	Make a fool of yourself
	Fall asleep and pass out
	Become depressed
	Become aggressive
	Become angry
	Become violent
	Have an accident e.g. get run over, fall over and hurt yourself
	Have a hangover (this is rare)
	See and hear things that aren’t there (hallucinate)

Volatile Substances (known as VS) are the collective name for chemicals that can be inhaled to get high. There are hundreds of different types of VS. They come as liquids or gases that give off fumes. The sale of lighter refi ll (butane) gas and some glues is illegal to under 18’s. Shop keepers can also refuse to sell to anyone they believe will misuse the product(s).

When VS are used for the purpose they are intended, such as deodorant to make you smell nice, they are pretty safe. When they are misused or used to try and get high the following can happen:

	Butane (the gas in aerosols) makes the heart more sensitive to adrenalin. If your body releases adrenalin (and this can happen with as little as moving around) it can stop it working at all. This is known as Sudden Sniffing Death Syndrome.
	It can cause fatal accidents as it can make people do things they wouldn’t usually do and
	make them unsteady on their feet.

VS kill more people under the age of 18 than any other drug. They also kill more fi rst time and experimental users than any other drug. It doesn’t matter how many times you have used, each time is as risky.

The top 4 causes of death from VS since 1972 are: