This is a whipped cream charger. It contains nitrous oxide gas. And we use it to make whipped cream.

Apart from that, inhaled nitrous oxide is also used as a painkiller in dental procedures and minor surgeries. It can cause euphoria and can make you laugh, and so it’s famously called laughing gas.

Now, using it once in a while is safe. However, repeated exposure can be harmful. It inactivates vitamin B12, and so the brain, spinal cord and nerves can’t use it for normal functioning.

This can cause neurological problems like numbness, tingling, paralysis, loss of balance and even trouble thinking clearly. The good news is, if treated early on with injectable vitamin B12 these problems can be reversed.

But left untreated, the damage can become permanent. Over the past few years, I personally have seen at least a number of teenagers with nitrous oxide toxicity from repeatedly inhaling whipped cream chargers to get high. So, stay away from it.