What is nitrous oxide?

You may know nitrous oxide as "laughing gas," the sedative your dentist uses to help you relax before a procedure. Your dentist places a mask over your nose so you can breathe in the nitrous oxide. It can relax, calm, and lull you into comfort. When your dental procedure is done, you take a few breaths of oxygen and the nitrous oxide is removed from your body.

At room temperature, nitrous oxide is a colorless, odorless, tasteless gas used for general anesthesia. It also is known as laughing gas. It is used in low doses for analgesia in obstetrics and during procedures, especially dental, that do not require unconsciousness. Higher doses can produce analgesia, pain relief. It is given through inhalation methods, which means it is inhaled into the lungs. It wears off quickly, shortly after it is discontinued.