Minns government announces restrictions on sale of nitrous oxide
When Sam Bramman first tried nitrous oxide, better known as nang, at a house party, he had no idea about its effects: “I thought it was just a harmless party drug, and I was told.”
The 21-year-old said addiction and subsequent psychosis “took complete control of my life.”
This led to a two-month stay in a psychiatric ward, followed by a year and a half of antipsychotic medication strong enough to leave him bedridden. This experience motivated Bramman to start a movement to raise awareness among his peers and to campaign for the government to regulate the easily accessible substance.
Their efforts appear to have paid off, with the NSW government announcing new restrictions on the sale of nitrous oxide on Thursday.
Popular among teens and 20-somethings, this volatile substance was previously widely available for recreational use online and from tobacco dealers. It is usually consumed by filling a balloon with nitrous oxide and absorbing its gas, creating a temporary high that lasts one to five minutes.
The new laws will ban the sale of large cylinders in retail outlets and the sale of nitrous oxide to anyone under 18. Retailers will no longer be allowed to display the boxes visibly and cannot sell them to adults before 5 a.m. or after 10 p.m. to limit their recreational use.
Same-day delivery and supply from online outlets will also be banned. Ampoules (containing between eight and 10 grams of gas) will be limited to a total of 250 grams per customer per day.
“We are taking strict precautions regarding the supply of these products in our society,” Health Minister Ryan Park said in a statement. “The prevalence of nitrous oxide abuse (or nangs) is increasing in our society and is having a profound impact on the health of our youth.”
Substance use expert Dr. from the University of Sydney. Emily Stockings said the changes were long overdue: “This announcement is great but it really puts NSW on pace with other states that have already introduced this.”
Short-term risks of using nitrous oxide include loss of consciousness or blood pressure, as well as the risk of frostbite or frostbite to the hands, airways, nose, and mouth when inhaled directly from the ampoules.
There is a higher risk with continuous use without breaks for air (for example, if a mask is connected to the canister). “You could end up effectively dying from asphyxiation,” Stockings said. Ten minutes of continuous use is enough to cause coma or death.
Long-term risks of frequent use include memory loss, brain or spinal cord damage, urinary incontinence, and psychosis.
Stockings said the use of nitrous oxide has a relatively low prevalence but is growing in popularity. The latest National Drug Safety Household Survey found that 1.4 percent of the over-14 population used inhalants, including nitrous oxide, and that figure jumped to 4 percent among 18-24 year olds.
Calls to the poison center regarding inhalant abuse increased sixfold between 2016 and 2020, from 16 calls to 116.
Stockings said, as with e-cigarettes, the restrictions would not prevent young people from accessing the drug through tobacco dealers who already flout the rules, but he called it a “good first step.”
“When regulations come into force, tradesmen foot the bill if they get caught, so the flow-on effect is that they increase the price of the individual unit… and that in itself is a deterrent.”
Tobacco compliance officers will be appointed to enforce the ban, with the support of the police when necessary. The maximum penalty for violating the regulations, which come into effect in November, will be $2,200 for individuals and $11,000 for companies per offense.
Provisions will be made for legitimate use, and business owners operating in sectors such as food production or pharmaceuticals will be exempt from the rules.
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