Orléans is the latest French city to ban the consumption of nitrous oxide in public spaces and restrict its sale to professionals. With recreational use of "laughing gas" increasing among young people, health experts are sounding the alarm over the risks.
Nitrous oxide is sold in high street catering shops, primarily for use in whipped-cream dispensers – but inhaling the gas has euphoric effects. Users, often young people, fill balloons with the gas – also used in hospitals by anaesthetists – inhale it and then throw the container away.
Measures to restrict its consumption have already been taken in France. In 2021, the sale of nitrous oxide was banned for minors. And since early 2024, the quantity that can be sold has been limited. Dijon, Cannes, Lyon and Roubaix have already banned its consumption in public and restricted sales.
But this has not prevented a market – aimed at younger people – from developing.
The appeal for young people
In 2022, according to a study by Santé Publique France, almost 14 percent of 18- to 24-year-olds had used it.
This is a relatively recent phenomenon, becoming particularly popular during the Covid-19 pandemic. The French Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (OFDT), notes that from 2017 onwards, the number of places selling the substance increased. Back then it was possible to buy nitrous oxide in bars and nightclubs, which is now prohibited.
Dr Christophe Riou, an addiction expert at the Hospices Civils de Lyon, says the appeal for young people is clear.
"What appeals to young people is that it's 'clean'. I'm not injecting anything, I'm not snorting anything. The fact that it's a gas gives it a feeling of harmlessness," he explains.
"And then there's the idea that the psychoactive effect is short-lived – which is true. Someone who uses nitrous oxide for two hours, if they stop 20 minutes before going home, won't look stoned."
He added that since young people won't smell of cannabis or alcohol, they can still claim to their parents that they've been behaving themselves with their friends. The product is also inexpensive.
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Damage to the nervous system
But nitrous oxide misuse is no laughing matter. Beginning in 2019, Riou began seeing young people arriving at his hospital's emergency room with neurological problems, such as tingling in their legs and loss of balance.
The doctor recalls initial misdiagnoses, such as multiple sclerosis, until the patients told him about their use of nitrous oxide.
Since then, the side effects have become better known. The gas attacks the nervous system and causes cognitive loss, lethargy – and potentially paralysis.
For more than a third of severely affected patients, their symptoms began after a year of regular use. And scientific evidence suggests nitrous oxide has the potential to become addictive.
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The main challenge for Riou is to get users to come to him before their condition becomes serious, as they are unaware that they are exposing themselves to a dangerous substance.
"The fact that there is no label for it, neither as a narcotic nor as a dangerous or poisonous substance, is a problem for me," he explains.
"Because, legally, the police can't crack down on it. But someone who has a drinking problem and has had their licence revoked or caused accidents understands that their addiction has consequences. So that pushes them to seek treatment."
In addition, because the gas affects the cognitive system and causes memory loss, this alters users' perception of priorities and hampers their ability to take action.
Riou has observed that most of the young people he sees who manage to overcome use of the substance are supported by their parents – so their treatment is paid for by someone else.
Push for legislation
Beyond the health consequences, the misuse of nitrous oxide is also a cause of road accidents. On 1 November, the death of 19-year-old Mathis in the north of France, who was hit by a car whose driver had just inhaled the gas, reignited the drive to legislate.
Mathis's parents criticised the lack of a law specifically prohibiting driving under the influence of nitrous oxide. But unlike with cannabis or alcohol, it is still impossible to detect whether a driver has been using the gas.
Several bills have been tabled by French MPs but none have yet completed the legislative process.
France Unbowed (LFI) MP Idir Boumertit is championing a bill that would ban the sale of nitrous oxide to individuals, whether in physical shops or online stores. It would be reserved solely for professionals in the medical and catering sectors.
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Ahmed Laouedj, a senator from the European Democratic and Social Rally, advocates criminalising the misuse of this gas. Under his bill, which has already been adopted by senators, sellers would be required to have special authorisation and consumers will have to be able to justify their possession of canisters.
"If tomorrow you stop someone in a car with 25 canisters and they don't have a legal document of authorisation, it's a year in prison and a €3,750 fine," he explains.
"With this law, you will be able to issue a fine. Police officers told me again last night that when they stop young people with gas canisters today, there is nothing they can do."
This text also provides for awareness-raising campaigns in secondary schools.
For Riou, this would be a positive step, but he fears the consequences of criminalisation of an addictive substance. In his view, this would lead to illegal production and means of acquiring the gas, ultimately resulting in an even more dangerous product.
This article was adapted from the original version in French by Marie Casadebaig.
