The parents of a 13-year-old girl who died from huffing toxic chemicals are desperate to raise awareness of the lethal trend.
Known as "chroming", the drug trend is becoming more and more prevalent, especially among teenagers.
On March 31 this year, Esra Haynes from Melbourne, Australia participated in the viral trend, which is a dangerous and sometimes even fatal craze, where chemicals in aerosol cans are inhaled for a temporary high.
Esra tragically died after inhaling gas from an aerosol deodorant can, causing her to go went into cardiac arrest. The 13-year-old sustained irreparable brain damage after the incident, which occurred at a friend's sleepover, as reported by News.com.au.
The young girl's parents, Paul and Andrea, have been left devastated by the shocking death of their daughter, who was a second-year high school student.
Speaking to Australian TV program A Current Affair, Esra's mother said: "It was just the regular routine of going to hang out with her mates," to which her dad added: "We always knew where she was and we knew who she was with. It wasn't anything out of the ordinary.
"To get this phone call at that time of night, [it] was one of the calls no parent ever wants to have to receive and we unfortunately got that call: 'Come and get your daughter.' We’ve got the pictures in our mind which will never be erased, you know, of what we were confronted with," he stated.
Paul and Andrea are hoping to harness their grief and use their traumatic loss to educate others on the dangers of chroming.
So, what is chroming?
According to The Royal Children's Hospital Melbourne, chroming is essentially a term given to the inhalation of toxic substances recreationally. These toxic chemicals can come from a range of different sources - including aerosol cans, paint, permanent markers, nail polish remover, hairspray, deodorants, lighter fluid, glue, cleaning products, nitrous oxide, or petrol.
One of the most popular methods is huffing nitrous oxide, which is most commonly referred to as laughing gas. The use of laughing gas has grown in popularity in recent years, however, the side effects can be equally as dangerous as harder drugs. Nitrous oxide is sold in single-use canisters, which are then subsequently dispensed into balloons and inhaled - but in certain countries, it can be illegal to use recreationally.
Inhaling nitrous oxide can result in a short-term high - causing a feeling of euphoria and floating that is over in a matter of seconds, per the Alcohol And Drug Foundation.
While chroming may be the general term for inhaling toxic chemicals, there are a variety of methods. One is huffing, which includes putting the chemicals on a cloth and holding it over the mouth and nose to inhale; bagging involves inhaling the substances from a bag; sniffing or snorting directly from the container; and spraying the chemicals directly into the nose or mouth.
What are the effects of chroming?
The Journal of Drug and Alcohol Research detailed that the side effects of chroming can include slurred speech, nausea, dizziness, vomiting, and disorientation.
While these effects are often short-lived, chroming can also result in more life-threatening complications - including cardiac arrest, suffocation, coma, seizures, and even choking.
The journal detailed that long-term abuse of these inhalants can lead to cognitive decline.
Who is most at risk?
American Addiction Centers have reported that chroming is the most popular among Gen Z, as well as in groups of people who cannot afford other drugs. Post-pandemic, there has been a rise in young people aged between 16 and 24 experimenting with chroming.
Celebrities like Jackass' Steve-O have been open about participating in inhaling, with the 48-year-old telling the New York Times in 2021 that he had once been hooked and was concerned about its prevalence across social media.
"It's definitely more, like, relevant now," he told the outlet, revealing that he'd seen multiple public figures experimenting with nitrous oxide on Instagram.
With an increasing amount of young people being active on social media sites like TikTok, parents have been told to be wary of viral videos under the term 'WhipTok' that focus on chroming.
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