Muse Treatment Center in Los Angeles Warns Household Items Can Be Used to Get High

Los Angeles, California -

Los Angeles, CA – Every responsible parent knows about “child-proofing,” protecting their baby or toddler from everyday household hazards. They take steps like covering electrical outlets to keep curious little fingers out, moving poisons out of reach, and securing furniture that could topple over if an active toddler decides to climb it. Muse Treatment, an addiction treatment center in Los Angeles, recommends that parents also addiction-proof their homes.

Alcohol and prescription medications may already be on your list of substances to watch. Here are four others that can be just as dangerous.

Over-the-Counter Drugs - Medications one can buy over the counter at a pharmacy may be just as dangerous as street drugs in some cases and can be just as addictive and destructive to a person’s life. Some teens will abuse cough medicine like NyQuil, Robitussin, and Vicks Formula 44 for the active ingredient Dextromethorphan (DXM). This is sometimes called “robotripping” or “triple C.”

Ingesting over-the-counter medications to get high can lead to serious health issues. These include damage to the liver, kidneys, and cardiovascular system (including heart attack); motor coordination problems; impaired impulse control; restlessness or anxiety; depression; and neurological problems like brain damage, seizures, and even coma.

Inhalants - The National Institute on Drug Abuse reports that inhalants are a category of chemicals found around the house or at a workplace that people inhale on purpose to feel high. These chemicals cause these feelings because they damage brain cells and nerve fibers as one inhales their fumes. They enter the bloodstream through the lungs, immediately limiting oxygen intake and replacing oxygen with volatile substances, slowing down brain activity.

Common inhalants include solvents like nail polish remover, paint thinner, gasoline, contact cement, dry-cleaning fluid, glue, and felt-tip marker fluid; gases like butane or propane; aerosols like hair spray, vegetable oil spray, fabric protector spray, and spray paint; and nitrites like leather cleaner, liquid aroma, room odorizer, amyl nitrite, butyl nitrite, and cyclohexyl nitrite.

Abusing inhalants can cause long-term brain damage, making it challenging to learn new things or carry on simple conversations. A person who has been abusing inhalants may begin to move slowly or become clumsy due to damage to the cerebellum. Muscle spasms, tremors, and other difficulties similar to multiple sclerosis can develop.

Health and Beauty Products - A multitude of household products contain large quantities of ethanol. For kids and teens thrill-seeking or looking for a means to get high, ingesting these items may be an easy way to achieve intoxication. They may also consume these products on a dare or out of curiosity. But it can cause alcohol poisoning. Some may contain between 20% and 35% ethanol by volume, equal to the amount of alcohol by volume found in alcoholic beverages like rum or brandy.

Hand Sanitizer and Mouthwash - Because they contain a high amount of alcohol, drinking these two products is popular among teens because they’re too young to drink legally. The amount of alcohol in a bottle of hand sanitizer is equivalent to five shots of liquor. Consuming these comes with serious health risks including memory loss, blindness, diarrhea, and internal organ damage. Hand sanitizer can also cause alcohol poisoning.

The easiest way to avoid a catastrophic accident or addiction involving household substances is to make them less accessible to your kids. Addiction-proofing your home means ensuring addictive substances are not readily available in bathroom cabinets and under the sink.

Help is available for yourself or a loved one if these strategies fail. For a comprehensive treatment of alcohol dependence or other substance use disorders, visit Muse Treatment, check out their Google Reviews or call (800) 426-1818.