The family of a 13-year-old boy who died surrounded by twelve aerosol cans have warned of the dangers of the deadly ‘chroming’ social media trend.
Nicky Lowther was found unconscious by his mother at his home in Canterbury, Kent, on June 27 last year and later died in hospital.
The schoolboy had been inhaling aerosols before his death in a practice known as ‘hugging’ which has become increasingly popular with teenagers – some of whom film themselves doing it and post it on social media.
Nicky’s family had never heard of the social media trend before which they described as ‘shocking’ and ‘dangerous’.
Toni Lowther, Nicky’s aunt, is urging parents to have open conversations with their children about the dangers of ‘chroming’ after her nephew’s sudden death.
The 35-year-old mother-of-two, who lives in Herne Bay, Kent, said: ‘By the time we got to the hospital, Nicky had already passed away.
‘We found out he’d been inhaling aerosols but I didn’t know the severity of it.
‘We don’t know how many he inhaled that day, but I think 12 cans were found in his bedroom. No one knows if he’d used them that day.
Nicky Lowther (pictured) was found unconscious by his mother at his home in Canterbury, Kent, on June 27 last year and later died in hospital
Toni Lowther (pictured with her late nephew Nicky) has issued a warning over the ‘chroming’ trend
‘There’s no safe way of inhaling aerosols. It’s dangerous.’
The bar supervisor added: ‘My daughter is only four months younger than Nicky and they went to the same playschool. I used to have him for sleepovers as a little child.
‘To us, he was just a cheeky chappy. He had a dark sense of humour, he was really funny.
‘We were close. We always did things as a family. We learned a lot when we went to the school after and learned just how kind and caring he was.
‘People looked up to him and if anything was getting picked on, he was the one they would go to. At school he was the one that looked out for everyone..’
Ms Lowther later learned about social media crazes involving inhaling aerosol cans and is urging parents to have open and honest conversations with their kids about the trend.
She said: ‘I’d never heard of [chroming] before. I heard afterwards about people doing it and dying or making it through the other side.
‘I was shocked. I’ve been told there’s even videos on social media about ‘how to do it’.
‘Kids need to understand how dangerous it is.
‘I would never think I would need to have a conversation with my daughter about how to use deodorant safely, other than putting it under your armpits.’
Ms Lowther later learned about social media crazes involving inhaling aerosol cans and is urging parents to have open and honest conversations with their kids about the trend. Pictured: Nicky Lowther
Nicky Lowther (pictured with Toni) had been inhaling aerosols before his death in a practice known as ‘hugging’ which has become increasingly popular with teenager
Nicky Lowther (pictured with Toni) had been inhaling aerosols before his death in a practice known as ‘hugging’ which has become increasingly popular with teenager
Ms Lowther has since launched an online petition to stop the sale of aerosols to young people to prevent future deaths, which has received more than 5,000 signatures.
She said: ‘[Nicky’s death] was so preventable, which is the hardest part. It’s the things he’s never going to do like leaving school, prom, passing his driving test, getting married and having kids.
‘It just still doesn’t seem like reality. It still feels so raw.
‘Anyone can buy aerosols currently, which is insane. It’s happening all the time. I felt like I needed to do something.
‘Nicky couldn’t be saved but hopefully his story can save other children from doing it.’
