Nitrite (Amyl Nitrite, Butyl Nitrite, Cyclohexyl Nitrite, IsoamylNitrite, Isobutyl Nitrite, Nitrous Acid)

Pronunciation: NIGH-tright
Chemical Abstracts Service Registry Number: 8017-89-8 (amyl nitrite); 542-56-3 (isobutyl nitrite) Formal Names: Amyl Nitrite, Butyl Nitrite, Cyclohexyl Nitrite, Isoamyl Nitrite,
Isobutyl Nitrite, Nitrous Acid
Informal Names: Aimes, Aimies, Ames, Amys, Army, Aroma of Men, Blackjack, Blue Heaven, Bolt, Boppers, Buds, Bullet, Buzz Bomb, Climax, Dixcorama, Hardware, Heart-On, High Ball, Liquid Gold, Liquid Incense, Locker Room, Man Aroma, Oz, Ozone, Pearls, Poppers, Quicksilver, Ram, Rush, Snappers, Thrust, Whiteout

Type: Inhalant.
Federal Schedule Listing: Unlisted, but may be in state schedules
USA Availability: Prescription for some formats; nonprescription for others
Pregnancy Category: X (amyl nitrite, also called isoamyl nitrite)

Uses.
Various chemical subvarieties of nitrite inhalants exist. Isobutyl nitrite is popular in some teenager circles and has been called “the cocaine of poor people.” Although anyone is physically free to use any drug, authorities find that nitrite sniffing has particular appeal to male homosexuals, especially during sexual activity. Aphrodisiac qualities are claimed for the substance. Amyl nitrite sniffers report euphoria and muscle relaxation. Isobutyl nitrite users report losing their sense of who they are and also becoming calm or, in contrast, becoming prone to wild conduct—differences that may illustrate the impact that someone’s personality and surroundings have on drug experiences.

Regardless of exact content of a nitrite experience, sensations are brief. Some persons have confused nitrites with nitrates; they have a similar spelling but are different substances.

Drawbacks.
Nitrite inhalants have brief action but may incapacitate a person during that time and thus should not be used while engaged in dangerous activity such as driving a car. Unwanted actions of nitrites include feelings of falling and spinning, headache, facial flushing, rapid heartbeat, generalized throbbing feelings, and low blood pressure (low enough to make a person
faint). Less common are nausea, vomiting, agitation, sweating, loss of energy and strength, and loss of bladder and rectal control. In mice experiments involving single and multiple exposures, inhaling isobutyl nitrite can cause anemia, harm the immune system, create nose and lung abnormalities, and disturb the spleen. Similar results are seen with rats. Blood and spleen abnormalities developed in a mice experiment using cyclohexyl nitrite. In a human patient, sniffing isobutyl nitrite caused bronchitis severe enough to affect the trachea. Amyl nitrite (which has a long medical history as a heart medicine) and isobutyl nitrite may each cause methemoglobinemia, a sometimes fatal blood disease interfering with the body’s use of oxygen; this affliction is particularly likely if a person drinks isobutyl nitrite instead of inhaling the vapor. Isobutyl nitrite interference with the body’s ability to use oxygen may be perilous for persons with inadequate oxygen supply to the heart.

In the early days of AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome) research, scientists noticed that many victims were nitrite sniffers. Because of this association, at one time nitrite sniffing was suspected to be the cause of AIDS, an excellent example of why association of a chemical with a disease cannot be assumed to demonstrate a cause-effect relationship. The substance is still, however, suspected of worsening the progression of AIDS once the disease strikes. In addition, damage to the immune system caused by nitrite inhalation is suspected of making a user more susceptible to AIDS and to a type of cancer called Kaposi’s sarcoma.

Abuse factors.
Tolerance to amyl nitrite can develop.

Drug interactions.
Although amyl nitrite is used as an antidote for cyanide poisoning, isobutyl nitrite can interact with coffee in a way that produces enough cyanide to poison someone who drinks the combination beverage. Using amyl nitrite with alcohol can cause heart failure. Nitrites are flammable, making them hazardous around flames or lit cigarettes. Persons with glaucoma
are supposed to avoid amyl nitrite. People report burns caused by isobutyl nitrite splashing on skin.

Cancer.
Laboratory tests and animal experiments (the latter involving longterm exposure) indicate that isobutyl nitrite liquid and vapor each cause cancer.

Pregnancy.
In the body nitrite breaks down into chemicals that may promote birth defects. The lower blood pressure produced by amyl nitrite is believed harmful to a fetus. Whether amyl nitrite passes into the milk of nursing mothers is unknown.

Additional scientific information may be found in:
Bradberry, S.M., et al. “Fatal Methemoglobinemia Due to Inhalation of Isobutyl Nitrite.”
Journal of Toxicology: Clinical Toxicology 32 (1994): 179–84.

Covalla, J.R., C.V. Strimlan, and J.G. Lech. “Severe Tracheobronchitis from Inhalation of an Isobutyl Nitrite Preparation.” Drug Intelligence and Clinical Pharmacy 15 (1981): 51–52.

Haverkos, H.W., and J. Dougherty. “Health Hazards of Nitrite Inhalants.” American Journal of Medicine 84 (1988): 479–82.

Haverkos, H.W., et al. “Nitrite Inhalants: History, Epidemiology, and Possible Links to AIDS.” Environmental Health Perspectives 102 (1994): 858–61.

Israelstam, S., S. Lambert, and G. Oki. “Use of Isobutyl Nitrite as a Recreational Drug.” British Journal of Addiction to Alcohol and Other Drugs 73 (1978): 319–20.

Lange, W.R., and J. Fralich. “Nitrite Inhalants: Promising and Discouraging News.” British Journal of Addiction 84 (1989): 121–23.

Soderberg, L.S. “Immunomodulation by Nitrite Inhalants May Predispose Abusers to AIDS and Kaposi’s Sarcoma.” Journal of Neuroimmunology 83 (1998): 157–61. (/drugsencyclopedia.blogspot.co)

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Nitrous Oxide (Dinitrogen Monoxide, Dinitrogen Oxide, Entonox)

Pronunciation: NIGH-truhs OX-eyed
Chemical Abstracts Service Registry Number: 10024-97-2
Formal Names: Dinitrogen Monoxide, Dinitrogen Oxide, Entonox
Informal Names: Fall Down, Gas, Hippie Crack, Hysteria, Laughing Gas, Nitro, Nitrous, Nitrous Acid, Noss, Pan, Shoot the Breeze, Tanks, Thrust, Whippets
Type: Inhalant.  Federal Schedule Listing: Unlisted USA Availability: Nonprescription, but sales and usage are controlled in some  jurisdictions

Uses.
This drug has been known since the 1720s. Some authorities describe nitrous oxide as an opioid; some persons even use the gas to counteract effects from stimulants. Nitrous oxide actions and its recreational use are similar to those of other inhalants. Recreational use is illegal in some jurisdictions but has a venerable history. The writer Samuel Taylor Coleridge, thesaurus compiler Peter Mark Roget, and potter Josiah Wedgwood were all eighteenthcentury notables who relaxed with nitrous oxide.

Although this substance is a pharmaceutical product, it also occurs naturally. For instance, eating lettuce generates enough nitrous oxide that scientists can measure it in a person’s breath. Large quantities are produced by wild prairie grass. Humans do not receive enough nitrous oxide from such natural sources to be affected, however. The substance is also produced by the human body. One study found the amount to increase as oral hygiene declined. As with the amounts produced by grass and lettuce, the level created by the body is too small to have any known effect on a person. From a global environmental perspective, however, nitrous oxide is a gas that promotes the greenhouse effect and ozone layer destruction, and concern exists about medical  usage affecting the world’s climate. Medical sources are estimated to create 2% of the atmosphere’s supply. Such usage may seem insignificant in that regard, but the gas is so durable in the atmosphere that any artificial source has been described as an environmental hazard.

Medically this drug is used as an anesthetic and to relieve pain ranging from dental work to migraine headache and cancer. In a medical context nitrous oxide is considered a reliable sedative. Experimental usage to treat anxiety has been successful, and one authority has noted a therapeutic antidepressant action. The substance has been used to help persons break entazocine addiction. Researchers report success in using the gas to ease alcohol, nicotine, and opioid withdrawal and to reduce craving for alcohol, tobacco, and marijuana among addicts. The latter three substances are so different from one another that nitrous oxide’s ability to reduce craving for all of them is remarkable. Some medical practitioners claim that a single dose of the gas actually eliminates craving for those substances, but that claim sounds much like those made for other “miracle cure” addiction treatments over the years but that turned out to be overly optimistic.

In former times, nitrous oxide was used to fight ear afflictions. For many years the substance was believed to make hearing more acute, but tests of hearing ability while using the compound show no improvement—and volunteers in those tests even felt they had lesser ability to detect soft sounds.

Nitrous oxide can increase pressure in the middle ear, and a case report tells of treatable hearing loss caused by the drug. Hearing defect has been reported from recreational use as well.

Typical nitrous oxide actions are tingling, numbness, dreaminess, euphoria, dysphoria (the opposite of euphoria), altered sensory perceptions, changed awareness of the body, and different experience of time flow. Although nitrous oxide is not classified as a hallucinogen, some descriptions of experiences are indistinguishable from hallucinations, particularly if a user is talented at creating internal imagery. Some persons claim to achieve mystical insight while under the drug’s influence. Intoxication from a dose lasts only a few minutes.

Drawbacks.
The substance disrupts learning ability. That action has been exploited medically to promote amnesia of unpleasant procedures. In a typical experiment volunteers who inhaled a low dose of the drug showed worsened reaction time, worsened ability to do arithmetic, and general sedation accompanied by nervous system depression (as opposed to stimulation). Interference with driving ability has been noted one-half hour after a dose. In another experiment volunteers felt stimulated; in still another experiment some individuals were sedated, and others became stimulated. One group became weary, uneasy, and confused. Short-term exposure can cause dizziness, nausea, vomiting, and breathing difficulty. Some recreational users quickly inhale as much nitrous oxide as possible and hold their breath. This technique causes a sudden change of pressure inside the lungs and can rupture small interior structures needed for breathing. Blood pressure can go up or down, depending on dosage. Users can lose consciousness, which may be hazardous in a recreational context due to falls or inability to shut off the gas source. The substance deactivates vitamin B12, an effect that can cause numbness and difficulty in moving arms and legs. Other results can be impotence and involuntary discharge of urine and feces. Nitrous oxide interferes with blood clotting, and long-term exposure has caused blood abnormalities. Persons with chronic industrial exposure have more kidney and liver disease than usual.

Nitrous oxide can become very cold when released as a gas from a pressurized container, cold enough to cause frostbite upon meeting skin or throat.

Breathing nitrous oxide without an adequate supply of oxygen can be fatal; a little in a closed space or a lot from a face mask can suffocate a user. Although nitrous oxide is called nonflammable, when inhaled it can seep into the abdominal cavity and bowels, mixing with body gases to create a flammable combination. If ignited the result would be like setting off an explosive inside the body; the danger is real enough that surgical personnel administering
nitrous oxide as an anesthetic have been warned about it.

As with many other drugs, effects of nitrous oxide can be influenced by changes in setting. For example, volunteers who knew what to expect performed better on tests than persons who had no information about what nitrous oxide would do to them.

Abuse factors.
In tests of the drug’s appeal, people in general chose nitrous oxide no more often than placebo; such lack of preference is a classic sign of low addictive potential. One experiment revealed a catch to such findings, however: Volunteers who enjoyed nitrous oxide effects chose it more often than placebo, and volunteers who disliked the drug actions chose it less often
than placebo. Thus, overall in the general population the drug might be no more attractive than placebo, but nonetheless some persons may find it captivating.

Such a finding is consistent with drugs having high abuse potential, such as heroin; so the fact that persons typically find no attraction in nitrous oxide does not prove low abuse potential for nitrous oxide. Its nickname “hippie crack” suggests that users have recognized an abuse potential. Nonetheless, a medical practitioner who administered the gas as a drug addiction
treatment said that in 15,000 cases not a single addict indicated subsequent craving for nitrous oxide; such a patient population would be expected to show particular susceptibility if given a substance with abuse potential. The same practitioner notes that regardless of theoretical possibilities, 200 years of experience demonstrate that nitrous oxide is among the least abused drugs.

Tolerance develops in rats. Human experimentation documents tolerance developing to some effects (such as euphoria and pain relief) but not necessarily to all.

Drug interactions.
In an experiment comparing light drinkers of alcohol to moderate drinkers, the moderate drinkers found nitrous oxide more appealing. One group of researchers found that alcohol boosts nitrous oxide effects and that the drug combination creates effects produced by neither substance alone. Those researchers concluded, however, that the combination was not
potent enough to have more appeal than nitrous oxide alone. That conclusion assumes, of course, that drug abusers base their conduct on rational analysis of scientific findings. In a similar experiment comparing users and nonusers of marijuana, when given a choice neither group preferred nitrous oxide more than a placebo, but nitrous oxide effects felt stronger to marijuana users. In rats ketamine boosts effects from nitrous oxide. In a human medical context
that combination is routine and appears safe, but the combination causes brain damage in rats. Persons using morphine or other opiates can experience muscle rigidity when inhaling nitrous oxide, a situation that can interfere with breathing.

Cancer.
Studies do not indicate that nitrous oxide causes cancer in animals. Whether the drug causes cancer in humans is unknown. Genetic damage similar to the amount from daily smoking 10 to 20 cigarettes has been found in health care workers routinely exposed to minuscule amounts of nitrous oxide; such damage might have a potential for causing cancer.

Pregnancy.
Fertility is lower in female rats exposed to nitrous oxide than in rats having no exposure. Lower fertility has also been observed among female health care workers with occupational exposure to the gas, and reduced fertility is also reported for males. Offspring of male mice exposed to nitrous oxide have weighed less than normal and have not matured as fast as normal.

Birth defects resulted from an experiment exposing pregnant rats to the gas for 24 hours. When given to pregnant women during childbirth the drug builds up in the fetal blood and brain; one authority recommends administering oxygen to any newborn whose mother received nitrous oxide while giving birth. As the twenty-first century began researchers reported that the gas might cause permanent fetal and newborn brain damage, a finding in contrast to previous understanding of the drug. Occupational exposure to nitrous oxide is associated with smaller infants and lower birth weight and may increase likelihood of spontaneous abortion. Pregnant and breast-feeding health workers are advised to avoid rooms where nitrous oxide residues may contaminate the air. Sperm abnormalities and lower fertility have been noted in male rats exposed to nitrous oxide. Wives of men exposed to the gas have shown a higher spontaneous abortion rate, compared to wives of men with no exposure. The compound is not detected in milk of nursing mothers.

Additional information.
“Nitrous acid” is an unstable nitrite substance. The nickname “nitrous acid” is sometimes used for nitrous oxide, but they are different substances.

Additional scientific information may be found in:
Block, R.I., et al. “Psychedelic Effects of a Subanesthetic Concentration of Nitrous Oxide.” Anesthesia Progress 37 (1990): 271–76.

Danto, B.L. “A Bag Full of Laughs.” American Journal of Psychiatry 121 (1964): 612–13.

Dohrn, C.S., et al. “Subjective and Psychomotor Effects of Nitrous Oxide in Healthy Volunteers.” Behavioural Pharmacology 3 (1992): 19–30.

Linden, C.H. “Volatile Substances of Abuse.” Emergency Medicine Clinics of North America 8 (1990): 559–78.

Temple, W.A., D.M. Beasley, and D.J. Baker. “Nitrous Oxide Abuse from Whipped Cream Dispenser Chargers.” New Zealand Medical Journal 110 (1997): 322–23.

Yagiela, J.A. “Health Hazards and Nitrous Oxide: A Time for Reappraisal.” Anesthesia Progress 38 (1991): 1–11.

Zacny, J.P., et al. “Examining the Subjective, Psychomotor and Reinforcing Effects of Nitrous Oxide in Healthy Volunteers: A Dose-Response Analysis.” Behavioural Pharmacology 7 (1996): 194–99. (drugsencyclopedia.blogspot.com)

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Nutmeg (Mace, Myristica fragrans)

Pronunciation: NUT-mehg
Chemical Abstracts Service Registry Number: 84082-68-8
Formal Names: Mace, Myristica fragrans
Type: Hallucinogen.
Federal Schedule Listing: Unlisted
USA Availability: Nonprescription (food)
Pregnancy Category: None

Uses.
Nutmeg is a familiar spice, but when used in larger amounts, it can act as a drug. Nutmeg originated in the Spice Islands of Indonesia. It is a seed coming from an evergreen tree that can reach 45 feet in height. Folk medicine uses nutmeg for treating insomnia, mouth sores, stomach inflammation, gas, diarrhea, and vomiting. Animal research verifies the antiinsomnia and antidiarrhea properties; they have been observed among humans undergoing formal medical care, and recreational users mention sleep-inducing action. The substance is also used as an aphrodisiac, and laboratory tests show that it kills headlice. Nutmeg may be able to help improve dysentery, infections, and rheumatism. In rabbit experiments, nutmeg lowered cholesterol levels and aided in coughing up mucus. Nutmeg, like many other spices, has antimicrobial actions that appear to retard spoilage of unrefrigerated food.

Nutmeg can produce false positives for marijuana in a field test that law enforcement officers have used to identify an unknown substance, but of course more sophisticated laboratory examination can correct such an error.

Drawbacks.
A nutmeg dose sufficient to produce hallucinations is also sufficient to produce headache, thirst, nausea, constipation, rapid heartbeat, dizziness, and a miserable hangover. Muscular discoordination can be severe enough to mimic multiple sclerosis. Research on cats produced liver destruction. All these results are from dosage quantities much higher than the small
amounts used for spicing foods.

Abuse factors.
Nutmeg is not considered addictive, although a case report notes a patient hospitalized for nutmeg poisoning, who craved the substance so much that he had a supply smuggled to him during his hospital stay. The report said he was never able to go beyond two weeks without nutmeg.

Some researchers are skeptical that nutmeg possesses hallucinogenic qualities, but for centuries numerous users have said otherwise. Betel chewers sometimes add nutmeg to a quid for extra sensations, and mixing tobacco with nutmeg is a practice reported in Asia. Research indicates that human body chemistry converts part of a nutmeg dose into substances related to amphetamine, affecting mood and sometimes causing hallucinations. The effects from a dose can last three days. Overdose requiring medical intervention is possible, although only one fatality is recorded. Nutmeg has received mixed reviews as a recreational drug. Some people call it incomparable; others resort to it only as an act of desperation when nothing else is available. A favorable description says nutmeg is “capable of removing one completely from the
world of reality in a hypnotic trance accompanied by golden dreams and euphoric bliss.”1 In contrast, someone who used nutmeg together with marijuana received emergency hospital treatment for gagging, hot and cold flashes, numbness, blurred vision, double vision, triple vision, and difficulty in controlling movements—among other complaints. Persons who use nutmeg by itself have also reported bad experiences.

Drug interactions.
In a mice experiment nutmeg boosted actions of alcohol and reduced those of dextroamphetamine. One authority describes nutmeg as a weak monoamine oxidase inhibitor (MAOI), and MAOIs interact badly with many drugs described in this blog.

Cancer.
A laboratory test using a nutmeg extract found evidence that it might cause cancer, and a nutmeg experiment with mice produced DNA changes that might be related to eventual cancer.

Pregnancy.
Male mice that received nutmeg in an experiment did not show chromosome damage. A case report notes a normal full-term infant born to a woman who had experienced nutmeg poisoning during pregnancy, but pregnant women are advised to avoid using nutmeg as a drug.

Additional information.
As with many other natural products, nutmeg’s effects may be produced by the combination of hundreds of chemicals found in the substance. Researchers have identified several chemicals as likely causes of nutmeg’s effects: elemicin, eugenol, myristicin, and safrole. Under laboratory
conditions myristicin can be chemically converted to MDMA and safrole to MDA, but this conversion has never been detected in animals or humans.

Body chemistry does convert myristicin into substances resembling amphetamine.
Myristicin is found not only in nutmeg but in plants related to carrots. An experiment testing myristicin on rats found no poisonous result. Researchers found no evidence of cancer after dosing mice with the substance, but the study did not last long enough to reveal whether cancer would eventually develop. Myristicin’s potential for causing birth defects is unknown. Safrole
has a faint ability to promote cancer; pregnant women are advised to avoid using it as a drug.

Mace comes from the same seed as nutmeg does, but is a different spice. Folk medicine uses mace to reduce inflammation and pain; research indicates it can protect against some chemically caused cancers. Mace is routinely added to areca nut quids.

Additional scientific information may be found in:
Fras, I., and J.J. Friedman. “Hallucinogenic Effects of Nutmeg in Adolescent.” New York
State Journal of Medicine 69 (1969): 463–65.

Lewis, P.W., and D.W. Patterson. “Acute and Chronic Effects of the Voluntary Inhalation
of Certain Commercial Volatile Solvents by Juveniles.” Journal of Drug
Issues 4 (1974): 172.

Lewis, W.H., and M.P.F. Elvin-Lewis. Medical Botany: Plants Affecting Man’s Health. New
York: John Wiley & Sons, 1977. 408–10.

Panayotopoulos, D.J., and D.D. Chisholm. “Hallucinogenic Effect of Nutmeg.” British
Medical Journal 1 (1970): 754.

Sjoholm, A., A. Lindberg, and M. Personne. “Acute Nutmeg Intoxication.” Journal of
Internal Medicine 243 (1998): 329–31.

Van Gils, C., and P.A. Cox. “Ethnobotany of Nutmeg in the Spice Islands.” Journal of
Ethnopharmacology 42 (1994): 117–24.

Weiss, G. “Hallucinogenic and Narcotic-Like Effects of Nutmeg.” Psychiatric Quarterly
34 (1960): 346–56.

Note
1. W.H. Lewis and M.P.F. Elvin-Lewis, Medical Botany: Plants Affecting Man’s Health
(New York: John Wiley & Sons, 1977), 408. (drugsencyclopedia.blogspot.com)

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