UK government plans to criminalise possession of nitrous oxide to control drug usage

To protect the younger generation from using drugs, Priti Patel, the Home Secretary of the United Kingdom has said that the government will take strict actions against people who are found using nitrous oxide, popularly known as laughing gas. According to media reports, nitrous oxide, one of the most popular drugs among people in the UK, is about to be banned, and the restriction anyone found using will have to face severe consequences. If reports are to be believed, every one person out of 10 is found inhaling the dangerous drug, which means more than half a million people in the United Kingdom have nitrous oxide. 

UK government to ban Nitrous Oxide soon

The Home Ministry of the UK is gearing up to take strict actions, as it has asked the administration to keep a close check on the Misuses of Drugs (ACMD) and examine the harms of laughing gas so that the government can take hard steps on its legal status. It is pertinent to mention here that the drug is sold in small silver cylinders, which are usually leaked into a ballon and then inhaled by mouth. Laughing gas is very common in parties and clubs and mainly in the UK and other western countries. Moreover, it is easily available in online stores. Although it can be sold to anyone, the drug comes with a warning which states it should not be used for its psychoactive properties.

The experts, however, have suggested to the government that the step towards banning the misuse of the drugs would be completely aimless because nitrous oxide is available on the market for medical and commercial uses. The drug is used in many medical and nonmedical products, including whipped cream and various other medicines. When inhaled, nitrous oxide can rapidly affect the brain of the person, causing elation and hallucinations, loss of body control, and temporary weakening of the senses. As per the report issued by the Office for National Statistics, in the last 16 years, there have been nearly 36 fatalities in Great Britain due to the intake or overuse of nitrous oxide. The increasing use of this drug among the youth has escalated concerns among the government, and they are looking for every possible way to control and stop it. The ministries have also tightened regulations on the sale of drugs.

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