Fatal ‘Laughing Gas’ Poisonings Skyrocket as Recreational Use Spreads

Eighth graders are among the top users of the unregulated ‘party drug.’
Fatal ‘Laughing Gas’ Poisonings Skyrocket as Recreational Use Spreads
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The past decade has seen a 578 percent rise in deaths because of nitrous oxide poisoning, a new research letter shows, revealing a sharp rise in U.S. fatalities linked to the gas—often called “laughing gas”—over the past 13 years.

The colorless, odorless gas is used recreationally as a euphoric and hallucinogenic drug.

George Citroner
George Citroner
Author
George Citroner reports on health and medicine, covering topics that include cancer, infectious diseases, and neurodegenerative conditions. He was awarded the Media Orthopaedic Reporting Excellence (MORE) award in 2020 for a story on osteoporosis risk in men.