Funny Holidays - Laughing Gas Birthday

It is not known exactly who made the decision to celebrate the birthday of laughing gas on April 9. Perhaps the author of this unusual holiday belongs to a dentist or other doctor, or maybe just a joker. It is not widely known; only people involved in medicine know about the date. Therefore, there are no established celebration traditions. What you definitely won’t be able to do on this day is without having to experience the effects of laughing gas. It is used only in medical institutions and under the strict supervision of specialists. But everyone who wants to celebrate the date can make a preventive visit to the dentist; it certainly won’t be unnecessary. Laughing gas is called nitrous oxide (nitrous oxide). This is an inert gaseous substance with a specific effect. It is colorless and odorless. When inhaled, it causes some intoxication, fun, euphoria, an excited state, and eliminates anxiety. In large quantities it acts like a drug. It has anesthetic properties, due to which it is used in surgery and dentistry - those who inhale nitrogen dioxide lose sensitivity to the effects of instruments. The use of nitrous oxide as an anesthetic has been known since 1799. The intoxicating and analgesic effect of this substance was confirmed by a number of experiments by research chemist Humphry Davy. And his experiments were based on the developments of the English physicist and priest Joseph Priestley. It was Humphry Davy who realized the promise of an inert substance for medicine and the possibility of using it to make procedures easier for patients. The problem was only the effect of over-stimulation. The researcher conducted experiments to determine the optimal dosage of laughing gas on himself. It turned out that the correct concentration of nitric oxide mixed with oxygen provides anesthesia without stimulating the nervous system. Laughing gas is only suitable for medical use; any other manipulation with it is dangerous. The use of the mixture involves monitoring the patient’s condition with special devices and an anesthesiologist. During surgery, it is always administered gradually, in small doses. An overdose of the substance threatens severe poisoning or permanent loss of consciousness. And the wrong concentration can even lead to death.