Medical uses include procedures on toddlers, children, and adults. However, as with any drug, there is a risk of short and long term health effects. There may also be the potential for overdosing. Short term side effects are not very common, but they can occur. The most common reason a person may experience short term side effects is due to inhaling the gas too quickly or inhaling too much.
In these circumstances, a few of the most common side effects of nitrous oxide include:. It is also possible that a person may experience a sensation of being high when they receive nitrous oxide. They may also be aware of sound distortions. During or immediately following the administration of nitrous oxide, a healthcare provider may also give a person oxygen. When a person receives oxygen after a medical procedure, it is typically to clear the remaining nitrous oxide from their body.
This helps the individual regain alertness and can help prevent a headache. People may feel sluggish or not alert following the inhalation of nitrous oxide. This effect typically wears off quickly. People can drive themselves to and from a medical procedure if they receive nitrous oxide, as long as they give themselves adequate time to recover from the gas.
To help avoid stomach issues, a person should eat a light meal and avoid eating a heavy meal for several hours after their procedure. Finally, people should be aware of possible allergic reactions to nitrous oxide. These may occur if someone is experiencing nitrous oxide for the first time, such as a child. If a person experiences any of these during or after receiving nitrous oxide, they should seek medical help immediately. There is little evidence to suggest that nitrous oxide causes any serious long term side effects.
Most of the side effects wear off quickly after use of the gas. A person should still let their healthcare provider know if they experience any unusual side effects or if these last for a few hours to days following their procedure. Although the average person may not experience any long term side effects, extended exposure, or intentional misuse of nitrous oxide may lead to health problems.
Overexposure can lead to anemia or a vitamin B deficiency. Finally, not everyone is a good candidate to receive nitrous oxide. In some cases, pre-existing medical conditions may make taking nitrous oxide less safe. As well as the danger of asphyxiation, when the gas comes out of a canister it can be so cold it can burn. A cold shock at the back of the throat can affect the vagus nerve, causing the heart rate to suddenly slow.
Researchers say that the number of people who die from inhaling nitrous oxide is actually low when compared with the number of people taking the drug every year. Death rates can be difficult to compare but in nitrous oxide was linked to one death - this was fewer than heroin and morphine 2, , cocaine , ecstasy 13 and cannabis seven.
The number of laughing gas deaths is fewer than those killed each year by helium, says David Nutt, professor of neuropsychopharmacology at Imperial College, London and former UK government drugs adviser. He argues that laughing gas is actually "exceptionally safe" considering the numbers who use it. If you breathe nothing but nitrous for 10 minutes you will die, but I don't think there's any evidence that nitrous kills people if you use it recreationally.
But to some critics, the dangers are clear. Breathing in high concentrations of laughing gas can quickly reduce the blood's level of oxygen. On a night out, in an uncontrolled environment, there is a risk that people can start feeling sleepy as they inhale the gas and pass out, says Dr Anna-Maria Rollin from the Royal College of Anaesthetists.
In March, doctors from the Royal Alexandra Children's Hospital in Brighton warned against using laughing gas after a teenager arrived in their emergency unit with breathing difficulties. She had inhaled a considerable quantity at a festival and air had leaked into the space between her lung and chest wall which can cause the lung to collapse. Heavy use can also deplete the body's stores of vitamin B12, causing anaemia and nerve damage.
People often use nitrous oxide in conjunction with cannabis or alcohol, explains Shirley Cramer, chief executive of the Royal Society for Public Health. That too is a concern, she says, as it increases the risks involved. Source: Frank. But in general, most users are not consuming laughing gas heavily and at that level it is "a remarkably safe drug", says Winstock, "unless you are drunk or high on other drugs and you happen to do it in the middle of the road and you fall over".
Perhaps the greatest danger is that more young people end up inhaling gases that they think are nitrous oxide but are in fact a dangerous substitute.
When year-old Joseph Benett died in , it was reported as a death from laughing gas. He had in fact consumed a cocktail of gases including butane and pentane from a can brought back from Israel. It's certainly not right or normal to inhale a gas for intoxication, he says. Paramedics are there to help. The use of any drug during pregnancy is potentially harmful to both the mother and unborn child. Inform antenatal staff, or your local doctor, of any drug use and attend regular antenatal check-ups.
Visit www. For free and confidential advice about alcohol and other drugs 24 hours, 7 days a week, call the National Alcohol and Other Drugs Hotline It will automatically direct you to the Alcohol and Drug Service in the state or territory you are calling from. The Ministry of Health wishes to advise that this website may contain names and images of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people now deceased.
It may also contain links to sites that may use images of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. You are here:. Is nitrous oxide a problem for you? What is nitrous oxide? Body Content 1. It is also sometimes referred to as an inhalant or a volatile substance. Nitrous Oxide N2O.
Body Content 2. Effects depend on Body Content 3. How nitrous oxide affects your body Tap on a body part to learn more of the effects nitrous oxide places on your body.
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