UK Neurologist Says Nitrous Oxide Abuse ‘Getting Worse’ and Calls for Outright Ban

Muslim charities warning youths about 'laughing gas'

Nitrous oxide canisters discarded by the roadside in Ebbsfleet, England, in January 2020. PA

One of Britain’s leading neurologists has urged the government to make nitrous oxide—sometimes known as “laughing gas”—a banned substance, but has warned of the danger of “criminalising” teenagers.

In 2021 the Home Office asked the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD) to consider whether to make possession of nitrous oxide a crime, but they are still awaiting a recommendation.