Nitrous Oxide
Gaseous dissociative anesthetic and NMDA receptor antagonist with additional opioid receptor modulation. Not metabolized, eliminated unchanged through the lungs within minutes. Exhaled concentration drops from 70% to <10% within 5 minutes. Recreational use ("whippets") produces brief euphoria and dissociation lasting 1-3 minutes. CRITICAL: chronic use irreversibly oxidizes cobalt in vitamin B12, inactivating methionine synthase and causing subacute combined degeneration of the spinal cord (myeloneuropathy).
Projected serum levels — 1 chargers (≈ 8k mg), as needed (shown daily)
Maintenance schedule: 1 chargers (≈ 8k mg) as needed (shown daily) (oral).
Modeled steady state after ~1 days: peak ≈ 7.6k mg, trough ≈ 328 mg body load. Population-based estimate over 15 days for a reference dose at a 70 kg reference body mass — the interactive app scales curves to your doses, timing, and body mass.
Key facts
- Category
- Dissociative
- Route modeled
- Oral
- Model confidence
- inferred
- Half-life
- 5.1 h
- Common dose
- 1 chargers (≈ 8k mg)
- Reference dose range
- 0.50–2 chargers (single dose)
- Suggested cadence
- as needed (shown daily)
Documented interactions
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moderate
Ibogaine + Nitrous Oxide
Ibogaine and Nitrous Oxide both push the kappa opioid and nmda in the same direction.
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moderate
L-Theanine + Nitrous Oxide
L-Theanine and Nitrous Oxide both push the gaba a and nmda in the same direction.
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watch
3-MeO-PCP (3-Methoxyphencyclidine) + Nitrous Oxide
3-MeO-PCP (3-Methoxyphencyclidine) and Nitrous Oxide both push the nmda in the same direction.
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watch
7-Hydroxymitragynine (7-OH) + Nitrous Oxide
7-Hydroxymitragynine (7-OH) and Nitrous Oxide both push the kappa opioid in the same direction.
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watch
Codeine + Nitrous Oxide
Codeine and Nitrous Oxide both push the kappa opioid in the same direction.
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watch
Dextromethorphan (DXM) + Nitrous Oxide
Dextromethorphan (DXM) and Nitrous Oxide both push the nmda in the same direction.
Serum checks 27 modeled interaction pairings for nitrous oxide across your whole stack — absorption conflicts, enzyme inhibition, and nutrient depletion included.
Research behind this entry
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Nitrous oxide (laughing gas) is an NMDA antagonist, neuroprotectant and neurotoxin
Landmark study establishing nitrous oxide as a non-competitive NMDA receptor antagonist with EC50 of 30-40% for blocking NMDAR-activated currents in hippocampal neurons.
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Nitrous Oxide Abuse: Clinical Outcomes, Pharmacology, Pharmacokinetics, Toxicity and Impact on Metabolism
Comprehensive review of nitrous oxide abuse covering rapid pulmonary elimination, B12 inactivation mechanism, myeloneuropathy pathophysiology, and clinical management of chronic abuse.
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Nitrous oxide-induced myeloneuropathy
Clinical review of nitrous oxide myeloneuropathy documenting irreversible B12 oxidation, subacute combined degeneration, and recovery timelines with B12 supplementation and abstinence.
3 published studies referenced in the app, each with a plain-language summary.