Nangs: Teenager Molly Day is addicted to nitrous oxide

Australia
By William

I’m addicted to nangs and would get through 2.6 LITERS of nitrous oxide a day – now I’m bedridden and can’t walk or go to the toilet on my own

  • Perth teenager Molly Day suffered from nitrous oxide poisoning
  • She was addicted to inhaling nitrous oxide canisters
  • The teen is bedridden in the hospital and unable to walk

By Jesse Hyland for Daily Mail Australia

published: | Updated:

A teen who is bedridden and unable to go to the bathroom on her own after developing a crippling addiction to nangs has issued a devastating warning.

Molly Day, 19, first used nangs during her year-end festivities, but what started as a little laughter slowly turned into a deadly addiction.

The teen, from Perth, would buy jerry cans with Buy It Now, Pay Later apps at smoke shops and convenience stores, putting him in thousands of dollars in debt.

She inhaled no fewer than two 1.3-litre nitrous oxide canisters every day.

Molly’s addiction got so bad that she is now bedridden in the hospital with nitrous oxide poisoning.

Perth teenager Molly Day (pictured right with her mother, Nancy) had an addiction to nangs that left her bedridden with nitrous oxide poisoning

What are nangs?

Nangs are nitrous oxide canisters, and they can be found in convenience stores for as little as $10 for $10, or in much larger quantities online.

Usually the drug is used for sedation and pain relief in dentistry, but more people use it to get high.

Users experience symptoms such as dizziness, euphoria, uncontrollable laughter and vertigo.

However, people can also die from taking nangs, as too much can cause a heart attack.

Prolonged use can cause depression or psychosis.

“There is no evidence to show that mixing nitrous oxide with other substances increases health risks,” says the website of the Alcohol and Drugs Foundation.

“However, it’s possible that combining the gas with stimulants and other drugs puts extra strain on the heart, increases blood pressure and can interfere with heart rate.”

Source: Alcohol and Drugs Foundation

She has little feeling below the waist. She cannot walk, eat or go to the toilet unassisted.

Now the teen is begging others not to make the same mistake.

‘Please listen to me. Just don’t do them,” she said A current situation.

“Two weeks ago I was a very healthy, walking girl and now I can’t do anything for myself. I can’t walk, I can’t control anything. It’s so deadly,’ she said.

Molly’s mother, nurse Nancy Day, says her daughter “cries into my arms every night” about her condition.

She has urged other teens to heed her daughter’s warning.

It wasn’t until Molly’s twin sister, Piper, expressed concern about her sibling’s addiction that Mrs. Day took notice.

Mrs Day recalled going into Molly’s bedroom at one point and finding 30 jerry cans there, including ‘big jerry cans of three liters of laughing gas’.

‘I had no idea. I am a health professional. I should have known. I should have seen the signs,’ she said.

Molly’s addiction to nangs deprived her brain of oxygen.

It got so bad that she crashed two cars in two months after falling asleep at the wheel.

It wasn’t until Molly started experiencing numbness in her legs that she drove herself to the hospital and discovered she was suffering from nitric oxide poisoning.

Molly and her mother have now called on the government to change the laws when it comes to selling nitrous oxide.

Molly's addiction caused her to inhale one to two 1.3 liter jerry cans of nitrous oxide per day. She bought canisters at smoke shops and convenience stores using buy now, pay later apps

Molly’s addiction caused her to inhale one to two 1.3 liter jerry cans of nitrous oxide per day. She bought canisters at smoke shops and convenience stores using buy now, pay later apps

The teen now has little feeling below her waist. She cannot walk, eat or go to the toilet unassisted

The teen now has little feeling below her waist. She cannot walk, eat or go to the toilet unassisted

Are nangs illegal?

Nitrous oxide is not illegal for adults to buy or sell, but it is a crime in NSW, Victoria and South Australia to sell to a customer that the seller believes will misuse.

Victoria imposes $8,000 fines and up to two years in prison for anyone selling them for human consumption.

South Australia is the only state that regulates the sale of nitrous oxide, prohibiting purchases between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m.

Stores are also not allowed to openly display nitrous oxide canisters.

There is no explicit crime in Queensland, but the police could impose fines under summary offense laws if they could prove that the seller reasonably believed the customer was misusing the product.

As of October 1, the Therapeutic Goods Administration classifies nitrous oxide as a schedule 6 poison unless used for therapeutic purposes.

That means boxes should have warning labels and safety instructions telling customers not to inhale the contents.

However, it declined to impose any sales restrictions, including quantity restrictions or trading hours.

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