Margaret 'Meg' Caldwell (29) died after becoming addicted to nitrous oxide

[raisedbywolves]

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news...ath-rcna191059

The lawsuit was filed on behalf of the family of Margaret Caldwell, 29, who went by Meg and lived in Clermont, Florida. Relatives who spoke exclusively to NBC News said Caldwell was inhaling nitrous oxide hundreds of times a day and insisted it must not be dangerous because it was so easy to buy.

“She would tell us, I’m buying this legally. I’m not doing anything wrong with this,” said Kathleen Dial, Caldwell’s sister and the plaintiff named as the representative of Caldwell’s estate in the suit. “That was a really hard thing to conquer with her, that thought process, because it was so readily available.”

Nitrous oxide, also known as laughing gas, is used as a sedative in medicine. In recent years, there has been an uptick in its use as an illicit recreational drug that gives users an immediate, brief euphoria when they inhale it. From 2023 to 2024, there was a 58% increase in reports of intentional exposure to nitrous oxide, data from America’s Poison Centers’ National Poison Data System shows.

Repeated nitrous oxide usage is associated with symptoms of vitamin B12 depletion, according to Dr. Cara Borelli, a physician specializing in addiction medicine at Yale School of Medicine. She said that can include cognitive and coordination problems and psychiatric issues.

Caldwell had been a top student growing up. Before her addiction took hold starting in her mid-20s, she enjoyed skiing, horseback riding and spending time with her nieces and nephews, her parents and sisters said.

Caldwell tried various rehabilitation facilities, but she always returned to nitrous oxide — even after she temporarily lost the use of her legs in September 2024 from what a doctor told her was an overdose of the gas, her family said.

“The doctor said, ‘You are going to die if you keep using this drug,’” said another sister, Leigh Caldwell. “As soon as she got back on her feet, she went back to the smoke shop and got the drug again.”

Caldwell died in November 2024 in the Orlando area. Her body was found behind an Orange County smoke shop where she had purchased nitrous oxide products, according to the lawsuit. Her family said an autopsy report is still pending.

The complaint is not a wrongful death lawsuit. Rather, it’s a proposed defendant class action against the seven Florida smoke shops that Caldwell frequented — a rare type of litigation against a small number of defendants that aims to tackle industrywide practices. The suit does not seek damages but simply to have the product immediately removed from store shelves. It is also a proposed class action lawsuit against major nitrous oxide manufacturers and seeks damages for families impacted by nitrous oxide addiction.

[Angiebla]

Doesnt it come in big tanks? What smoke shop would sell that?

Hundreds of times a day? How did she live that long?

[raisedbywolves]

Doesnt it come in big tanks? What smoke shop would sell that?

Hundreds of times a day? How did she live that long?

I think they sell it in little devices about the size of a vape.

[marshmallow]

I think they sell it in little devices about the size of a vape.

I just learned something. I had no idea.

[raisedbywolves]

If you go to the link I posted in the first post there is a video about it. The still shot on the video shows what it looks like. I have seen empty cartridges like this in parking lots before.

[Angiebla]

Thats super dangerous. Didnt anyone see Little Shop of Horrors?


oh wait they had it in a little thingy back then

[Nic B]

Back when I was like 18, we did that stuff. We called them "whip its".

[Bewitchingstorm]

Her FB: https://www.facebook.com/meg.caldwell.3

[raisedbywolves]

Back when I was like 18, we did that stuff. We called them "whip its".

I've heard this expression, didn't realize it was the same thing.

[Bewitchingstorm]

The complaint is not a wrongful death lawsuit. Rather, it’s a proposed defendant class action against the seven Florida smoke shops that Caldwell frequented — a rare type of litigation against a small number of defendants that aims to tackle industrywide practices. The suit does not seek damages but simply to have the product immediately removed from store shelves.

I admire her family for bringing awareness to this.

Here's a FB page specific to her story: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61572986244296

[Boston Babe 73]

Yeah, you find those little canisters everywhere around L.A. They call them whippets there too. Not to be confused with Poppers that are similar, but not the same.