The heartbroken mum of a boy who died after inhaling deodorant has told an inquest she believes he had been taking part in a deadly online trend called “chroming”.
Eleven empty aerosol cans were found hidden in the bedroom of 13-year-old Nicky Lowther, who was discovered unconscious in the hallway of his Canterbury home.
The popular teenager was rushed to hospital but had suffered heart failure caused by the toxic fumes and was tragically unable to be saved.
Now, his mum, Naomi Jarnell, says more needs to be done to highlight the dangers of “chroming” – a form of recreational drug use that involves inhaling solvents from everyday household items to achieve a quick ‘high’.
The practice – also known as “huffing” – has become increasingly popular with teenagers, with some even filming themselves taking part in the trend and sharing the videos on social media.
Ms Jarnell says more needs to be done to educate youngsters who believe they are “invincible”.
“I believe the ‘chroming’ trend needs to be highlighted in education among teenagers as it’s on the rise, and another tragic death like this needs to be prevented to stop another family having to go through this,” she told this paper.
“It’s horrendous. My darling boy had so much to live for and he would have done so well in life, I just know it. He had that drive. It’s heartbreaking.
“I don’t want the way he died to define him as a person. He had pure wit and loyalty, and was a genuinely loving person and a beautiful boy.
“It’s more about schools and parents being vigilant of these silly, dangerous trends that they get up to, and educating them, as teenagers think they’re invincible.”
The inquest at Oakwood House in Maidstone heard last Wednesday that Canterbury Academy pupil Nicky had been abusing solvents despite efforts to get him to stop.
Ms Jarnell says she now believes he had been saving his dinner money and using it to buy deodorant after school without her knowledge.
Giving evidence at the inquest, DS Rachel King, who was called to the scene on the day of the tragedy, said when inspecting Nicky’s bedroom she noticed it was “heavily fragranced”.
Eleven empty cans of deodorant were found “concealed in various places”, including some in a suitcase under his bed.
Just days before his death on June 27 this year, Ms Jarnell met with teachers at Nicky’s school to raise concerns about her son experimenting with aerosol inhalation so they could support him further.
The school immediately made referrals to the relevant authorities but Nicky died just three days later, before any interventions could be made.
The youngster, who was known to children’s mental health services, was also awaiting further assessments for an autism and ADHD diagnosis.
He had previously experienced thoughts of not wanting to be alive, which was a long-standing issue that presented when he was stressed.
Coroner Sarah Clarke concluded his death to have been “misadventure”.
“Nicky made comments about wanting to die but they were made out of stress and feeling out of control due to his neurodivergence,” she said.
“It was as a direct result of inhaling the deodorant can that he died, that can’t be ignored.
“The only conclusion in these circumstances is misadventure.”
Speaking after the inquest, Nicky’s grandfather, Nick Lowther, said his grandson was a “cheeky” young man who will be missed by many.
“He was a lovely lad and he was cheeky, but he obviously had some demons going on that we knew nothing about,” he said.
“When we’d go over to my son’s house, he’d be on the chair out in the conservatory and he’d pull his coat over him and he’d be playing his game under his coat, in the dark.
“At school he had plenty of fans and he was always laughing.
“He was a typical young Lowther boy and I was the same, and his dad was the same when he was younger.”
Following the tragedy, Nicky’s aunt, Toni Lowther, started a petition calling for age restrictions to be introduced on buying aerosols such as deodorants.
She says she had been shocked to find out they were potentially so deadly yet easily accessible to young people.
Speaking after the hearing, Miss Lowther, whose petition now has more than 5,000 signatures, said: “I feel locally there’s lots of children talking about this.
“I’ve had a few phone calls where people have said ‘My daughter’s got off the bus from school and there were a couple of kids talking about Nicky’s story’, and it’s then being spoken about in homes.
“I can take comfort from that. Knowing people are talking about it is important because I didn’t have a clue about any of this until we were on our way to the hospital and I Googled it.
“It’s good that people are educating themselves on the dangers. Parents need to be more aware as well.”
Miss Jarnell says her son was known for having a dark sense of humour and loved celebrating Halloween every year.
He would spend weeks planning his costumes and loved trick-or-treating with his siblings.
Ms Jarnell decorated Nicky’s grave on October 4 with pumpkins, spider webs and flowers in tribute to her “blue-eyed boy”.
The Halloween theme will remain in place until today, when Ms Jarnell will switch to Christmas decorations, including Nicky’s very own tree.
