Laughing gas is frequently inhaled recreationally via balloons Shutterstock/Ink Drop
A way to detect laughing gas on people’s breath for at least an hour after use could be developed into a breathalyser-like test.
As recreational use of laughing gas, or nitrous oxide, has increased in countries such as the UK, some have moved to ban it. The UK government, for example, made it illegal to possess nitrous oxide in 2023. However, as nitrous oxide is a gas rather than a solid, it’s harder to test using biological samples and there is little information on how long it might…
