HEAD of unit psychiatry at the Fiji National University College of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences Sefanaia Qaloewai has raised alarm over early exposure to substance abuse among children, warning of serious and long-term impacts on brain development and mental health.
Dr Qaloewai said cases seen at hospitals indicate that many young people begin experimenting with harmful substances at a very early age.
“When we get to see our patients’ who get admitted to the hospital, when we ask about their history, when they first started using glue or using drugs, most of them would relate that they’ve started much early and in the range of Year 1, Year 2, Year 3, Year 4, in primary School years,” Dr Qaloewai said.
“So, that was something that we have known, but we need to conduct more study on it to really validate the exact numbers. But we’re getting this sort of findings when we see our patients in the hospital.”
He explained that substances commonly found in households pose significant risks to children.
“There’s a substance that’s in glue, an adhesive called “Toluene”. Toluene is a strong chemical that directly kills the brain cells.
“And so those who have used it in large quantities, they end up getting mental disorder symptoms. And that’s what we’re increasingly seeing in our hospital.”
He said recovery for those affected is often a long and difficult process.
“It takes a long time to rehabilitate those who use glue, sniffing glue or fuel, benzene.
“I think this is something that’s quite common because it’s accessible. Nobody police it.”
He highlighted a lack of awareness among parents and teachers about the dangers.
“When children are buying glue or they find glue laying around the house, nobody really understands the reasons why they use it or the extent of damage it can do to a child’s brain.
“I think there’s a lack of understanding with parents and with teachers, the extent of damage that glue can do to a child’s brain.”
Dr Qaloewai said children often turn to easily accessible substances to experience a temporary high.
“So, things like glue, benzene, shoe polish… they use these sort of chemicals to help give them a high.
“Glue has the same effect as alcohol, so it gets people to have that relaxed filling. But then after a while it goes away.
“But chronic users, they’ll later on develop like mental health symptoms, like hallucinations, and sometimes they become forgetful because it kills the brain cells.
“It really affects their function, their ability to think, their ability to complete their tasks, their ability to finish school, because it affects their memory.”
He stressed the urgent need for greater awareness, stricter monitoring, and early intervention to protect children from the harmful effects of substance abuse.
