Erowid Inhalants Vault : Timeline

CHEMICALS

inhalants

Erowid Canvas Tote/Shopping Bag

This reusable "Ecobag" is made of 100% recycled mid-weight
(10 oz) cotton canvas, printed with the Erowid logo.

Donate now and receive yours!

Inhalants

Timeline

by Erowid

800 BCE - 392 CE		Oracle at Delphi inhales what are believed to have been Ethylene vapors from fissures in the rock beneath the temple. The oracle would enter a "trance" or even "frenzy"and answer questions or make prophesies. 1 [More Info]
1275		Ether was discovered by Spanish chemist Raymundus Lullius and named "sweet vitriol" 2
1772		Nitrous Oxide gas first discovered by English scientist Joseph Priestley. [Details] To prepare nitrous oxide, Priestley heated ammonium nitrate in the presence of iron filings, then passed the gas through water to remove toxic by-products, before storing the resultant gas, nitrous oxide. The discovery, amongst others, was presented to the Royal Academy in a paper titled Experiments and Observations on Different Kinds of Air'.
1831-1832		Chloroform was discovered independently by three scientists: Samuel Guthrie, Justus von Liebig, and Eugene Soubeiran. Originally it was used as a treatment for asthma.
c. 1840		Ether is used as a social lubricant during parties called "Ether Frolics".
Late 1940s		First known outbreak of gasoline sniffing in Warren, Pennsylvania. 3
1950s		Reports of many cases of deliberate inhalation of gasoline fumes by young people in the United States, Australia, India and Great Britain. [More Info]
1959		Earliest known references to glue-sniffing in either medical or popular literature. 4 [Details] Articles reported on arrests made in Tuscan, Arizona and Pueblo, Colorado.
1960s		An increasing number of newspaper articles report adolescents sniffing airplane glue. 3
1960		The FDA eliminates the prescription status of alkyl nitrites, making it available over the counter.
1961 - 1965		Glue sniffing epidemic in Denver. The epidemic may have been caused by hyperbolic media reports about the activity. Reports of glue sniffing soon spread to other U.S. cities like New York and Salt Lake City. 4
Jun 6, 1962		First known law against glue sniffing is passed in Anaheim, California. 4 [Details] This ordinance made it illegal for any person to "inhale, breathe, or drink any compound, liquid, chemical, or any substance known as glue, adhesive cement, mucilage, dope, or other material or substance or combination thereof, with the intention of becoming intoxicated, elated, dazed, paralyzed, irrational or in any manner changing, distorting or disturbing the eyesight, thinking process, balance, or coordination of such person."
Jun 28, 1962		First peer-reviewed journal article on recreational glue sniffing appeared in the Journal of the American Medical Association. 5
c. 1967		Increasing reports of the recreational inhalation of aerosol products. 4
1968		13 states and 29 counties and municipalities have passed anti glue sniffing legislation. 4
1969		The FDA reinstates the prescription status of amyl nitrite. Rumors suggest this was done in part because its maker was concerned about recreational use among homosexuals and how that might impact their image.
Oct 1, 1970		US BNDD reports that "sniffing of ballpoint pen ink, deodorants, decongestants, spot removers, or spray-on foot powder is on the increase". 6 [Details] US BNDD cites the Council on Drug Addiction of New York City.
1977		Butyl nitrite sales exceed $50 million per year according to the Wall Street Journal
1980		The last recorded anesthetic use of chloroform is administered, in Edinburgh, Scotland. 7 [Details] Anesthesiologist Dr. H.W.C. Griffiths, about to retire from practice, gives chloroform to a patient for the last time. In his career, he had used the gas several thousand times on obstetrics patients.
1981		FDA issues an official statement regarding nitrite odorants, stating that no regulations or restrictions are necessary because of the "absence of demonstrable hazard".

References

Broad WJ. "Fumes and Visions Were Not a Myth for Oracle at Delphi". New York Times. Mar 19, 2002.
Anesthesia Nursing and Medicine Web Page
Glowa JR. The Encyclopedia of Psychoactive Drugs: Inhalants. Chelsea House, 1986.
Brecher EM, and the Editors of Consumer Reports Magazine. "How to launch a nationwide drug menace". Licit and Illicit Drugs. 1972.
Glaser HH, Massengale ON. "Glue-Sniffing in Children". JAMA. Jul 28, 1962;Vol 181:301.
Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs. Microgram. Oct 1970;3(6):174.
Altman LK. Who Goes First?: The Story of Self-Experimentation in Medicine. University of California Press. 1998. p.66.