ABU DHABI // Nearly a third of all teenagers have tried unconventional drugs, such as inhaling gasoline fumes, glue, correcting fluids or burning black ants, a survey has found.
Research published in Journal of Environmental and Public Health in April found that of the 6,363 youngsters aged 13 to 20 surveyed, 14 per cent said they smoked tobacco and 29 per cent had tried the inhalants.
The study, titled Air Quality and Respiratory Health Among Adolescents from the United Arab Emirates, said these habits could lead to chronic respiratory condition, among other health problems.
“Consistent with literature findings, our results suggest that smoking and ever purposefully smelling gasoline fumes, correctors, car exhaust or burning black ants are predictors of wheeze and dry cough,” according to the study, which was led by researchers in Canada and the UAE.
Dr Caroline Barakat-Haddad, assistant professor at the University of Ontario’s health science department, who is part of the research team said this discovery is “very concerning.”
“All these behaviours are linked to negative health effects, including poor respiratory health. While our study identified that this is a significant problem in the UAE adolescent population that needs to be addressed, we feel follow-up studies should focus on the specifics that relate to this behaviour.”
Researcher Dr Rania Dghaim, associate professor at Zayed University’s Department of Natural Science and Public Health, agreed.
“In the long-term use, it might have an effect on the lung or the nervous system,” Dr Dghaim said of the adolescents’ practice of sniffing chemical fumes and ants. “But I don’t think it’s well-explored, so maybe it’s an area for research in the future.”
The study focused on examining air quality — indoor and outdoor — in relation to respiratory health of adolescents and young adults by surveying both the youngsters and their parents.
“This is a small part of a bigger study, actually,” said Dr Dghaim. “We started a big study trying to look at the health status of children and youth in the UAE and trying to find out what is the health status and also to look at the exposure of this population to a range of health determinants.”
The study also found that 40 per cent of the participants were exposed to second-hand smoke in their homes. Where the students lived could also affect their risk for developing a respiratory illness. Fifteen per cent of the participants reported living near an industrial plant, gas station, dump or construction site. Eleven per cent lived near overhead power lines or plants. Sixty per cent reported living in homes with “residential pests” such as cockroaches and rodents. Seventy-two per cent live in homes where pesticides or insecticides are used.
“Some of the predictors for these respiratory conditions and symptoms were basically the geographic region,” said Dr Dghaim. “For example, we found that higher prevalence among children who live in Abu Dhabi or among those who live next to industrial plants or dump sites, so it seems it’s a predictor for these conditions.”
Overall, 34.8 per cent of the students reported a dry cough and 12.2 per cent reporting wheezing within the past year. Asthma affected 12.3 per cent of the respondents; 1.8 per cent suffered from chronic bronchitis and 0.5 per cent had emphysema.
Education is key to addressing these issues, said Dr Dghaim.
“The only way we can help is by increasing the awareness,” said Dr Dghaim. “So, some of the way to address this problem is to do more health education campaigns in schools, to address the problem of smoking and all those things we mentioned in the paper. Also we can look at regular monitoring of indoor and outdoor air quality and maybe invest more in air quality and air pollution research.”
rpennington@thenational.ae
