Nitrous oxide nangs: Government needs to take action now – Editorial
Used and discarded cream-charger canisters in Hawke's Bay. Photo / Doug Laing
THE FACTS
- Hawke’s Bay community leaders have held a crisis meeting over people inhaling nitrous oxide gas to get high.
- At least two cases of nerve injury from chronic use have been reported at Hawke’s Bay Hospital.
- Other areas, including Auckland, Waikato and Bay of Plenty, have also been impacted.
Urgent action is needed to address the potentially fatal practice of people huffing nitrous oxide out of canisters known as “nangs”.
The issue has escalated in Hawke’s Bay, where there has been an apparently sharp rise in people inhaling the gas.
Hawke’s Bay Today revealed last Saturday that community leaders were so concerned that they held a crisis meeting.
Dozens of discarded canisters, bearing bright colours, labels and names, are reportedly being found on streets, in parks and at refuse transfer stations in Hawke’s Bay.
It has been described as an epidemic.
This week, it was revealed that at least two cases of nerve injury from chronic nitrous oxide use have been seen at Hawke’s Bay Hospital.
Nitrous oxide chargers are intended for use only in commercial catering or bakeries. The gas has also been used as pain relief and as a sedative for more than 150 years.
But, over time, it has morphed into a recreational drug.
It used to be common for nangs to be small, soda bottle-sized chargers. Now, they are the size of large thermos flasks or breathing apparatus tanks and provide up to 260 hits.
The problem of people huffing nitrous oxide isn’t new or unique to Hawke’s Bay.
There have been news articles about cases in Auckland, Bay of Plenty and one that involved a fatal crash in Waikato.
Some people, including youths, will be drawn to nangs because they can be cheap, easy to buy and provide a short-lived high. They can make people euphoric, relaxed and dizzy.
There is a nasty flipside, however. They can also have a devastating impact on people’s health.
Falls, trips, unconsciousness, nerve injuries, brain damage, vitamin B12 deficiency, spinal cord problems, bladder weakness, freeze burns, lung rupture and lethal diffusion hypoxia headline a grim list.
The Government last year clarified restrictions on the sale of nangs and strengthened penalties.
Penalties for selling the gas for personal use were increased last year and include fines of up to $500,000 for a company or up to two years’ jail for an individual.
The fine for anyone found to have an “unapproved psychoactive substance” in their possession is up to $500.
However, the current approach is not working. The warning bells are ringing loudly.
So, what more is being done about it?
Health Minister Simeon Brown says the Government is taking the issue seriously and examining how effective toughened sanctions have been.
An editorial in this paper last October made clear that further action is needed and outlined actions we believed could be taken. They include tighter restrictions on sales and better education.
Our views haven’t changed. If anything, the recent news from Hawke’s Bay shows the problem remains, and a stronger response is needed before more lives are lost or severely impacted.
The Government needs to take further action now. People’s health and lives depend on it.