In 2024, a total of 1,167 calls were received by the Poison Information Centre's hotline regarding people inhaling nitrous oxide for the purpose of intoxication. Up to and including November this year, the corresponding figure is 683 calls – and since the end of spring there has been a significant decrease in calls per month. The import of nitrous oxide has also decreased significantly during the year.
The reason?
According to both the Swedish Poison Information Centre and Minister of Social Affairs Jakob Forssmed (KD), this is due to the change in the law that came into effect on July 1.
“Legislation makes a difference”
It then became illegal to sell nitrous oxide if there was reason to assume that the gas would be used as an intoxicant, and it was also prohibited to sell nitrous oxide to minors.
The numbers plummeted after the change in law. It's really gratifying. Every number in the statistics is someone who felt bad from nitrous oxide, so the fact that it has decreased is really great. It's hard to say that it wasn't due to the change in law, says Johanna Nordmark Grass, a doctor at the Swedish Poison Information Centre, to TT.
Jakob Forssmed tells TT that he is happy and satisfied when he sees the statistics.
It shows that you can make a difference with legislation, he says.
"I am very happy that we were able to speed up the process of this legislation, that we got it in place six months earlier than the investigation suggested. We had an unsustainable development where young people in particular were at risk of neurological damage due to nitrous oxide," he continues.
Loss of sensation
Johanna Nordmark Grass says that there are major dangers associated with inhaling nitrous oxide.
"What has worried us is that many people have become addicted to it, inhaling large amounts. This can cause damage to the nervous system, both in the body and in the brain. We are not entirely sure that the damage that can occur, such as loss of sensation, will be reversible," she says.
2021: 140 calls
2022: 434 calls
2023: 589 calls
2024: 1,167 calls
2025 (through November): 683 calls
