# Question about ‘huffing’ and drug addicts.
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-huffing-and-drug-addicts/241730
**Category:** Factual Questions
**Created:** [April 23, 2004, 11:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-huffing-and-drug-addicts/241730 "2004-04-23T23:29:24Z")
**Posts on this page:** 7
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)
#### Post date: [April 23, 2004, 11:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-huffing-and-drug-addicts/241730/1 "2004-04-23T23:29:24Z")
My brother tried to help out a distant acquaintance that had fallen on hard times. He flew her to his town and let her live with him.
After two months he had to kick her out. Long story short, she is an alcoholic, and likely a drug addict. When my brother was picking up the pieces, he found used syringes in her room, she is not a diabetic. Also, he found three empty cans of Pledge furniture polish.
Is that something someone would huff (is that the term)? We can’t imagine what the heck she was doing with it. I would guess that the wax and oils would probably kill you, and pretty darn quick.
Is there some other use drug addicts have for furniture polish?
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### Author:  [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)
#### Post date: [April 23, 2004, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-huffing-and-drug-addicts/241730/2 "2004-04-23T23:55:51Z")
Furniture polish is a commonly abused inhalant, and likely to be used by any chemically dependent person to make themselves feel different. I’ve known addicts who have shot up ice water, urine, and chocolate milk shakes in a vain quest to make themselves feel less miserable. So huffing aerosols is no big stretch.
Physiologically it deprives the brain of oxygen, and substitutes some funky organic aromatic compounds, which generally interfere with higher brain function.
Tragic, really. Just another step in the pitiful and incomprehensible demoralization that is a full-blown addiction.
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### Author:  [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)
#### Post date: [April 24, 2004, 12:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-huffing-and-drug-addicts/241730/3 "2004-04-24T00:29:18Z")
> [@](#):
>
> Furniture polish is a commonly abused inhalant
Wow. Furniture polish. Holy cow.
> [@](#):
>
> Tragic, really. Just another step in the pitiful and incomprehensible demoralization that is a full-blown addiction.
So true. My brother tried to help. It was hard for him kick her out I know.
She was arrested twice for trying to skip out on bar bills (while she was staying at my brothers).
My brother offered to send her anywhere. Her Mom in Louisiana, her Dad in Texas, even her daughter in Alaska. No go. He ended up leaving her with the phone number of women’s shelters and County Social Services, and bought her 2 nights stay at a motel 6.
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### Author:  [@NinjaChick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NinjaChick)
#### Post date: [April 25, 2004, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-huffing-and-drug-addicts/241730/4 "2004-04-25T00:09:13Z")
Furniture polish, from what I’ve seen, is actually very commonly used to ‘huff’. It’s relatively potent, as is metal (bronze, silver) polish.
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### Author:  [@Antigen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Antigen)
#### Post date: [April 25, 2004, 12:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-huffing-and-drug-addicts/241730/5 "2004-04-25T00:18:25Z")
Two kids in my area died this week from sniffing [butane](http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/cpress/20040420/ca_pr_on_na/teen_dead_fumes_3), and I’ve heard of people using furniture polish, nailpolish remover, and liquid paper to try and get high.
Most kids don’t realize that that stuff can kill you as easily as a heroin overdose. Just because you can buy it at a convenience store doesn’t mean it’s not dangerous. A lot of “just say no to drugs” programs talk about marijuana and street drugs, but it’s rare you get a lecture on the dangers of “huffing”.
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### Author:  [@pool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pool)
#### Post date: [April 25, 2004, 1:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-huffing-and-drug-addicts/241730/6 "2004-04-25T01:10:46Z")
It’s hard to believe some of the things people do to get “high” I mean huffing is basically giving yourself deliberate brain damage. I would rather see someone do anything besides that shit. I am reminded of this episode of COPS…This guy was living in his mom’s backyard and was huffing shit…it said 2 weeks later he committed suicide.
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### Author:  [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)
#### Post date: [April 25, 2004, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-huffing-and-drug-addicts/241730/7 "2004-04-25T02:06:18Z")
> [@pool](#):
>
> It’s hard to believe some of the things people do to get “high” I mean huffing is basically giving yourself deliberate brain damage. I would rather see someone do anything besides that shit. I am reminded of this episode of COPS…This guy was living in his mom’s backyard and was huffing shit…it said 2 weeks later he committed suicide.
Like I said, it’s the pitiful and incomprehensible demoralization that is a full-blown addiction