Recreational use of laughing gas on the rise, despite health risks

The drug nitrous oxide, also known as laughing gas, has been used for its psychoactive effects.

Recreational use of nitrous oxide, also known as laughing gas, is increasing, according to an EU drugs agency.

The rise comes despite the risks of taking the drug including frostbite, irreversible nerve and lung damage, permanent paralysis and fatal asphyxiation.

That use is on the rise features in the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA) report, Recreational use of nitrous oxide: a growing concern for Europe.

It notes that while the drug has been used for its psychoactive effects — including giving the user a sense of euphoria — for more than 200 years, there has been a "large" increase in its use in the past 10 years.

Particular concerns have been raised since 2017, when the drug became more widely available and in larger quantities, says the report.

“The growing popularity of nitrous oxide might be explained to some extent by its easy availability, low price, short-lived effects and a general perception by users as a relatively safe drug”, states the report, which is published on Monday.

Seven case studies feature in the report from Ireland, Denmark, France, Lithuania, Netherlands, Portugal, and Britain.

Researchers for the EU agency say a key factor linked to the increased recreational use of the gas is the widespread availability of small 8-gram cartridges of nitrous oxide, which are used to fill balloons from which the gas is then inhaled.

These cartridges are inexpensive and easy to buy from legitimate sources, such as convenience stores, supermarkets, and online suppliers.

Poisonings

However, the report also warns, as the number of people using nitrous oxide has grown, so too has the number of poisonings that tend to be associated with heavier or more frequent use.

The report shows a small but significant rise in reports of poisonings to poison centres.

In Denmark, cases rose from 16 in 2015 to 73 in 2021 while in France, 134 cases were reported in 2020 — up from 10 in 2017 — and in the Netherlands, cases rose from 13 in 2015 to 144 in 2020.

The report notes that the prevalence of nitrous oxide use is not routinely collected in Ireland’s National Drug and Alcohol survey.

But the report authors looked at what research there is available from a variety of sources in Ireland, including a European survey which included Irish data collected between March and May 2021.

That particular study found 23.3% of respondents had used laughing gas, and those aged 18-24 were most likely to have done so.

EMCDDA director Alexis Goosdeel says: ‘The rise in the recreational use of nitrous oxide in some parts of Europe is a cause for concern.

"There is a general perception among users that inhalation of nitrous oxide is safe.

"Yet we see that more frequent or heavier use of the gas increases the risk of serious harms, such as nervous system damage."