Youth advocates are calling for better regulation of the sales of nitrous oxide canisters, or ‘nangs’ which are available over the counter and used for recreational drug use.
An annual survey conducted on a focus group in NSW has found the use of nitrous oxide to have jumped significantly in the last year, from 55% to 75% despite the adverse effects of the canisters being well known.
Concerns arise following the recent Schoolies season, after which nangs could be found littered along the foreshore of the Gold Coast and Byron Bay - although data on hospitalisation or deaths from inhaling nitrous oxide is sparse.