“To me it looks like a pistol sitting on a shelf”
The parents of a teenager who died after taking part in a dangerous trend called “chroming” have launched a desperate appeal to avoid more deaths.
Esra Haynes, 13, went into cardiac arrest after inhaling aerosol deodorant during a sleepover with friends on Easter Sunday. The gifted eighth-grade student from Melbourne, Australia, spent eight days on life support before her parents made the difficult decision to turn it off. Doctors told them that Ezra would never recover from the brain damage caused by the chrome plating.
Chromium, also known as sniffing or sniffing, is when someone inhales toxic chemicals. These include paint, solvents, aerosol cans, glue, cleaning products or gasoline. This practice affects the central nervous system and slows brain activity, causing a brief “high.” However, it can also cause slurred speech, dizziness, and hallucinations. Nausea, vomiting, and disorientation. It can cause a heart attack or suffocation, and cause permanent damage to the brain, liver and kidneys.
Isla's parents, Paul and Andrea Haynes, have now publicly called on children and other teenagers not to make the same mistake their daughter made.
The couple had no idea what chrome plating was until they received a call saying their child had been taken to hospital.
“Children don't just focus on the next day. They really don't know. Especially how it's going to affect them,” Paul told Australia's current affairs program.
Andrea added: “The knock-on effect is that it's absolutely devastating and we have no children to take home.”
The couple's heartbreaking story was enough to bring show host Ellie Landon to tears.
Esra had just been named co-captain of the AFL under-14s on the day she fell victim to the trend.
Paul recounted his daughter's final days to Current Affairs, saying doctors asked the family to bring family and friends to “say goodbye to our 13-year-old daughter;” a rare event for such a young soul. Very difficult stuff.”
“She was put on the bed so we could lay with her and we hugged her.”
The Haines are calling for action to prevent a death like Esra's from happening again.
They want CPR to be made compulsory in all schools and for deodorizing formulas to be made safer.
“To me, this seems like a pistol on the shelf. We need the manufacturers to step up and actually change the recipe or the propellant,” Paul said.
Isla's sister Imogen earlier told Seven News: “Our mission is absolutely to raise awareness among children and anyone who does this. We don't want this to happen to anyone else. We don't want it to happen to anyone else. It's absolutely horrific for another family to experience something like this.”
Her brother Seth added: “I just want people to be aware that this could happen very quickly and we don't want to lose any more amazing people.”
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