Experts warn of ‘alarming’ rise in spinal cord damage from laughing gas

A new Irish study reports a sharp rise in nitrous oxide spinal cord damage among young people.

The gas, commonly known as laughing gas, is legal for industrial and catering use. Youth workers and community groups say children and young people increasingly inhale it from balloons.

Research led by Seamus Looby, consultant neuroradiologist at Dublin’s Beaumont Hospital, found a significant increase in cases since the Covid-19 pandemic.

Mr Looby stated: “The rise in cases of spinal cord damage since the pandemic is alarming.”

While no cases were recorded at the hospital between 2012 and 2020, 14 diagnoses were made from 2021 to the end of 2024. The median age of patients was 20.

Most patients improved after treatment, but none fully recovered, and all were left with lasting neurological damage.

The harm occurs when nitrous oxide disrupts the body’s ability to use vitamin B12, leading to subacute combined degeneration of the spinal cord (SACD).

This means the protective covering around spinal nerves breaks down. Symptoms include numbness in the hands or feet and problems with balance and co-ordination.

Mr Looby said: “Teenagers are inhaling laughing gas canisters as they consider it a bit of harmless fun.

“But what we’re seeing tells a different story.”

He said he hopes the study “prompts greater awareness and education on nitrous oxide’s potential for permanent, damaging effects.”

The research was the second-largest European case study of nitrous oxide-induced SACD.

In the UK, possession of laughing gas with the intent of getting high was made illegal in November 2023, with repeat offenders facing up to two years in jail.

Nitrous oxide is a Class C drug under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971.

Dealers who sell the substance, nicknamed “hippy crack”, could face up to 14 years in jail.