Nitrous oxide is known on the streets as nangs or laughing gas. It has been used as a sedative for pain relief for more than 150 years, and for food preparation.
Using it recreationally is illegal, but not uncommon. Inhaling it can induce a short period of euphoria, or even psychedelic effects, including changes in perception.
Excessive use can lead to cognitive, psychiatric and neurological impairment, and B12 deficiency.
Misuse can even result in death, Medsafe New Zealand says.
A drug education organisation, The Level, said nitrous oxide did not have a high addiction potential, but some people might experience cravings.
Last year, an Auckland woman lost movement in her legs after inhaling nitrous oxide.
One of the 1.6 litre canisters – about 130 times a standard nang dose – of nitrous oxide found by a street cleaner at the Māngere town centre. Photo / Supplied via RNZ
Accessiblity
The Auckland mother, whose daughter is in her 20s, said canisters of nitrous oxide were too easily accessible.
The packaging of some of the larger canisters felt targeted towards young people with bright colours and graphics.
“It’s mostly teenagers, young people buying these canisters. They’re not the little things that you see in the gutter, the little tiny things. These are ginormous,” she said.
She claimed they were being sold at dairies. The law says they can be sold only if intended for whipping cream.
The mother claimed all her daughter had to do was sign a piece of paper to say she wanted the gas for whipping cream.
In September last year, Shane Reti, Health Minister at the time, announced a rule change making it illegal to sell nitrous oxide or products containing it for recreational use.
Dr Shane Reti, during his tenure as Health Minister, announced rule changes last year to try to restrict sales of nitrous oxide. Photo / NZME
‘Walking zombies’
The mother said her daughter’s nitrous oxide use began about a year ago. Her friends were “all doing it” after they realised the canisters were being sold at their local dairy.
While the rest of her friends had “fun times” and were able to move on, her daughter and another friend couldn’t.
“I didn’t know to begin with. I couldn’t figure it out. She would ring me, and she would be just incoherent, talking gibberish.”
When she became aware of what was happening, she would go to help her daughter and friend, who were often found sitting in a car filled with cylinders.
A Bay of Plenty woman was disgusted when she found about 50 nitrous oxide containers discarded near Rotorua.
“They were literally just going up the road to the dairy, getting more cylinders, going back to the car, huffing them with their balloon … They don’t want to leave the vehicle or leave the cylinders, because as soon as they do, then they come back off it again.”
Things got to a point where her daughter’s friend was essentially living in the car.
The turning point for her daughter was missing an international flight.
“They don’t know where they were. They couldn’t find their way to the airport. And then they finally get to the airport, but they’ve missed the check-in and they’ve missed their flight.”
A 30-centimetre nitrous oxide canister placed beside a soccer ball shows the scale of bottles now appearing on Manurewa streets.
She said her daughter was aware of what she needed to do and channelled her need for a dopamine hit away from drugs and towards exercise.
“It’s all about personal responsibility. You don’t want to say, ‘Oh, my mates made me do it’ or anything.
“She knows 100%. These are the choices that you make, and you live with the consequences of those.”
The mother said her daughter’s friend was told that, if they continued to use nitrous oxide, they could suffer serious neurological problems, end up in a wheelchair, or it could potentially lead to death.
NZ Drug Foundation executive director Sarah Helm told the Herald last year that there was “genuine concern” about reports of nitrous oxide being sold to young people, and in large canisters.
“A B12 deficiency can be quite serious and result in nervous system damage and hospitalisation. Improper use can result in suffocation. So they’re not insignificant harms when used in very large quantities, in particular.
“It’s irresponsible for retailers to be selling, particularly to young people or in those large quantities.”