• Laughing gas has been implicated in 1,800 accidents in the Netherlands over the last three years.
• The popular legal high has grown in popularity among clubbers and festival-goers.
• Nitrous oxide is the most commonly abused substance (after cannabis) among 16- to 24-year-olds in England.

The Dutch government has banned the use of nitrous oxide, also known as laughing gas, due to health concerns about the growing number of young people who use it.

The ban, which goes into effect in January, makes it illegal to buy, sell, or own gas.

The authorities, however, claim that it can still be used for medicinal purposes and in the food industry.

The government also hopes that the ban will reduce the number of drug-related traffic accidents.

Laughing gas has been implicated in 1,800 accidents in the Netherlands over the last three years, according to road safety monitor TeamAlert.

“Almost two a day, figures that really shocked us,” TeamAlert’s Maartje Oosterink told the newspaper earlier this month.

In recent years, the popular legal high has grown in popularity among clubbers and festival-goers, and it is frequently combined with other drugs such as MDMA (ecstasy) or ketamine.

The gas is typically sold in small metal canisters that are emptied into balloons before inhalation.

According to the Trimbos Institute, more than 37% of Dutch partygoers, mostly young people, use laughing gas on a regular basis.

However, there are serious concerns about the depressant-type drug’s effect on the brain and the body’s response. Regular use can also cause a vitamin deficiency, which can cause permanent nerve damage and paralysis.

“The recreational use of nitrous oxide leads to enormous health risks,” State Secretary for Health, Welfare and Sport Maarten van Ooijen said, as the government decision was announced.

According to Justice Minister Dilan Yeşilgöz, the ban will allow police to take immediate action if they discover someone with nitrous oxide gas canisters in their vehicle.

Concerns about the drug’s rising popularity extend beyond the Netherlands.

It is the most commonly abused substance (after cannabis) among 16- to 24-year-olds in England.

Concerns about the gas’s misuse prompted the UK Home Office to consider prohibiting all direct consumer sales of the gas last month.

Because it can be legally bought and sold for the purpose of making whipped cream, it has become widely and easily available for recreational use.

Nitrous oxide is commonly used as an anesthetic in large canisters by patients in hospitals and dental surgeries.

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