PHOENIX — A new way to get drunk has local police departments and health agencies concerned.

Young adults are now snorting small shots of alcohol, primarily gin. It is the latest fad in the world of intoxication and it is dangerous.

“When we see these types of new trends people get over intoxicated and people do things where they lose control of themselves and they do something they typically would not do,” Tempe Police Lt. Mike Pooley said.

Though snorting alcohol is not illegal if the person consuming the drink is 21 or older, Pooley said the side effects of snorting alcohol are concerning.

“We hear different trends that are happening all the time. It is concerning when peoples safety or people judgment gets in the way and they end up doing something that’s going to cause pain or hurt themselves,” he said.

Pooley said people need to think carefully about how much alcohol they consume and the method they consume it.

“We want people, if they’re going to drink, to be responsible about it and not do things where they’re going to get overly consumed in it and have over intoxication and do something that is going to hurt themselves or hurt someone else,” Pooley said.

Snorting gin or other types of liquor can lead to a much higher chance of alcohol poisoning according to alcohol and addiction specialists.

When a person drinks liquor, the stomach and liver dilute the alcohol content, but Valley-based addiction interventionist Carey Davidson said that does not happen when liquor is snorted.

“It is very dangerous, and a lot of times what happens without the filter of the stomach and the liver, the alcohol concentration is much higher,” Davidson said.

He said snorting alcohol can also lead to addiction or dependency much faster than drinking alcohol because the effects are much more rapid and intense.

“Without having to go through the stomach or the liver for filtration and detoxification it goes straight in through the sinuses and is quite an effective delivery system,” Davidson said.