– I didn’t know you could suffocate, says a 16-year-old girl news meets outside Vulkan in Oslo. The group of friends knows very well what nitrous oxide is when we ask. They know that the gas should actually be used to make cream, but few do. Several people they know inhale the gas to get high. The girls often see balloons or spray cans strewn along the ground. – I have done it once. It was fun, says one of the girls. Sold on the black market The spray cans are neither illegal, nor particularly difficult to get hold of. The rush that the gas from the cans gives is mild, and only lasts a few minutes. It can make you feel relaxed, or make you laugh. – Nitrous oxide is imported from Sweden and sold on the black market, says Mohamed Farris. He has worked with children and young people for over 20 years. Many of the people he talks to say that they buy nitrous oxide black. That is, through a broker, or in a market that is outside the law. Then they avoid their parents discovering that they have ordered it online. He is concerned that it has become so common. – It’s not illegal. When someone uses it right in front of the police without any consequences, the young people think it’s harmless, he says. Exciting with drugs – When you know what to look for, you see them in the cityscape everywhere, says Sturla K. Johansen. Photo: Tipster Sturla K. Johansen in Rusinfo has worked with information about drugs for over 25 years. He believes the reason nitrous oxide has become so popular is twofold. He thinks the other reason is that the intoxication is so short-lived. He is still worried. – Nitrous oxide is often used in conjunction with alcohol. It increases the probability that something can go wrong, says Johansen. – I have heard that you lose brain cells To find out how much it is used, news has traveled to different areas in the city. About 20 young people were asked if they know about it. Of the 20, three admitted that they had tried it themselves. – It’s great fun, says an 18-year-old news meets outside the Tveita centre. The group of friends say that people do it on the way home from school, or at a party. The 18-year-old who has tried it says he would not do it again. – On Tiktok, there are a lot of videos where people say that they have been hurt by it, says one of the girls in the gang. The young people will be anonymous in the meeting with news. Photo: Siv Johanne Bjørkly Seglem / news But it is not the case that all young people use nitrous oxide. That’s what the boy gang Mateo, Kristoffer, Aksel and Alfred say, walking out of Elvebakken school. They know very well what it is. But they only know a few who get high on it. – I have heard that you lose brain cells from it, says Aksel. Mateo Bash Sinding-Larsen, Kristoffer Øi-Akselsen, Aksel Kemp and Alfred Kjøs Oddli believe that nitrous oxide use is not that widespread among those they know. Photo: Siv Johanne Seglem / news Several of the young people news spoke to think it would have been wise to introduce an age limit on buying it. The group of girls outside Vulkan say they wish they had known more about how the substance affects the body. They also believe that it should have been taken up more at school. This box was left outside the sports shop in Torshov on a Tuesday morning. Photo: Henriette Mordt / news Wants an age limit The fact that intoxication is so short-lived can make people not think that it is so dangerous. That worries the police, who have seen more of it in recent years. Now they have taken to social media to warn both young people and parents. They also ask people to tip them if they find empty cartridges or bottles. Not least, they ask parents to talk to their children about it. Sturla K. Johansen from Rusinfo. Photo: Rusinfo – Parents should familiarize themselves with what this entails when using it as a drug for health’s sake, says Anne Katrin Storsveen Oppegaard from Nettpatruljen. Johansen from Rusinfo believes that it is a good idea to introduce an age limit on the sale of nitrous oxide cartridges. In Denmark, an age limit of 18 has been introduced. – That would make it a little more difficult to sell this as an intoxicant to young people. It would also become slightly less accessible. Most young people have no need to use this as propellant in cream, he says.
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– I have heard that you lose brain cells – news Oslo og Viken – Local news, TV and radio
