Does sucking in helium out of a baloon badd for you?? ?

Question

im just weondering does helium harm your brain or body???

Answer 1

Did you mean "IS sucking in helium out of a BALLOON bad for you?" the answer is yes, it decreases the level of oxygen in your blood which may kill brain cells if done for an extended period of time. I would advise you to stop now...

Answer 2

yea, it will make you dizzy

Only if you inhale too much, like for a minute straight will you get some brain damage.  You can try it, it makes your voice funny, but don't have too much at one time.  It should be something you only do two-four times just for fun. :P

Answer 3

One breath will *NOT* cause harm, several breaths in a row will have an effect that is similar to smoke inhalation. No Oxygen means that your brain is being starved.

SOURCE American College of Emergency Physicians

WASHINGTON, Aug. 28,1996-- A healthy 13-year-old boy experienced a potentially fatal ending to some party fun when he inhaled helium gas directly from a pressurized tank. After inhaling the gas at a party, the boy became unconscious, and had a seizure for ten minutes. When emergency physicians saw the boy in the emergency department, they discovered that he had suffered a cerebral gas embolism -- a temporary stroke caused by air bubbles in the blood stream -- in addition to lung damage caused by rapid, uncontrolled lung expansion.

"Normally, inhaling helium from balloons doesn't cause

problems," says Bing Pao, MD, the study's main author. "But inhaling

anything from a pressurized tank not meant to be used on people can be potentially lethal."

After diagnosis, the boy was transferred to a hyperbaric chamber at the University of California at San Diego. The boy spent several sessions in the chamber -- a pressurized room generally used to help underwater divers decompress -- and completely recovered. Over the years, children and adults have inhaled helium from balloons to produce high, cartoon-like voices. However, only recently have pressurized helium tanks become readily available to the general public for use at parties.

"This is the first case, as far as we know, of anyone

suffering a cerebral gas embolism from inhaling helium," Dr. Pao notes. But there's the potential for future problems, especially for adolescents."