Can you get Addicted to Smelling Salts?
You’re watching a powerlifting competition and just before the athlete prepares for a massive deadlift, they go over and uncap a small bottle and take a sharp sniff. This makes them violently shake their heads, and they suddenly look prepared to move an entire building. That small bottle is an ammonia inhalant commonly known as smelling salts. Can you get addicted to smelling salts?
Smelling salts are ammonia-based inhalants that are bottled into small packages. It doesn’t necessarily cause any sort of high, but the rush of oxygen that it triggers in your sympathetic nervous system can give you the feeling of intense alertness.
These types of inhalants deliver an intense jolt to the central nervous system to instantly wake up the mind and body. With a substance that provides a powerful and immediate kick, a logical question arises: can you get addicted to smelling salts?
What are Smelling Salts?
Smelling salts have been used for centuries. The early Romans were some of the first to use smelling salts and it was later popularized in the Victorian era to revive people who had fainted. Today, they are commonly used by athletes in competitions.
Smelling salts consist of ammonia and other chemicals. But, most smelling salt mixtures consist of ammonia, water and alcohol. Ammonia is a toxic irritant substance. It is traditionally used in fertilizers and household cleaning products.
Ammonia releases a noxious gas that irritates your nasal and lung membranes when you sniff and triggering the trigeminal nerve. It instantly sends a panic message to the brain. The irritation causes a person to involuntarily inhale, which triggers instant respiration. This allows oxygen to flow rapidly into the brain and makes you breathe faster.
Smelling salts do not alter brain chemistry like recreational drugs do. They trigger an acute pain response. This results in your body jumping to a fight or flight mode where your heart rate spikes, your breathing quickens to pull in more oxygen and the surge of adrenaline courses throughout your body, resulting in immediate alertness.
Can you get Addicted to Smelling Salts?
Smelling salts are not physically addictive. From a clinical standpoint, you cannot form a physical addiction to ammonia inhalants. Substances like nicotine, alcohol and opioids hijack the brain’s reward center. They release massive amounts of dopamine, creating a euphoric high and altering brain chemistry so that a physical addiction occurs.
Ammonia does not stimulate the same reward pathway. Instead, it triggers a painful response rather than a euphoric response. The body will not develop physical withdrawal symptoms when you stop using ammonia inhalants. But that doesn’t mean you can’t develop a psychological addiction to smelling salts.
Developing a Psychological Dependence
Many athletes develop a strong psychological dependence on smelling salts. This usually stems from the ritual of ammonia sniffing in heavy strength training. If an athlete uses smelling salts before every single personal record attempt, their brain will begin to associate the smell of ammonia with peak physical performance. And over time, they may begin to feel they are not as strong without using it.
You won’t become physically dependent or addicted to ammonia inhalants. But you can become reliant on the “hype” and “energy” it can seemingly provide your brain when you do use it.
How are Smelling Salts used?
Smelling salts are traditionally made of concentrated ammonia in salt form. They are often used to counteract the impact of fainting. Fainting can be caused by several factors. A lack of blood flow and oxygen to the brain can cause fainting. Breathing issues or low blood pressure can also cause fainting.
The smelling salts are placed 4 to 6 inches away from the person’s nose. When they inhale, they are often jolted back to consciousness immediately. The ammonia allows the person to deeply inhale and resets respiratory patterns and sends more oxygen to the brain when breathing comes back to normal.
Today, most people use smelling salts to help increase alertness and focus. Many athletes feel the cognitive boost you get from smelling salts can also temporarily increase physical strength. However, research suggests this has not been scientifically proven.
Check Your Insurance Coverage for FREE
Find out if your insurance covers addiction treatment in minutes. We accept most insurance!
How to use Smelling Salts Safely
- Never put the bottle directly into your nostril. Hold it away from your face.
- Instead of taking a deep and aggressive inhale, waft the fumes towards your nose with your hand and take a normal breath.
- Use it sparingly
- Be sure the product’s lid is tight so no liquid has spilled out to minimize the risk of chemical burns.
- If you begin to feel lightheaded or experience lung pain, stop using it immediately.
Risks and Dangers of Using Smelling Salts
In 2024, the FDA warned the public not to use smelling salts. Ammonia inhalants are not approved drugs. They have not been clinically shown to improve alertness time or physical performance.
Smelling salts are widely available and legally sold. In fact, in the US, it is legal to use smelling salts to help a person regain consciousness after fainting. Because of this, many assume they are harmless. When used sparingly and correctly, it is considered safe and effective. But using any chemical comes with risks.
Inhaling smelling salts can quickly lead to coughing, airway constriction or eye, nose and throat irritation. Other people may experience shortness of breath, seizures, diarrhea or vomiting.
If you are constantly using smelling salts, you might encounter these long-term side effects.
- Nasal passage irritation. Chronic inhalation of harsh ammonia gas can dry out and inflame the mucosal lining of your nose. This can lead to chronic dry nose, nosebleeds and eventually loss of smell.
- Headaches. The intense spike in blood pressure and immediate pain response can trigger headaches or migraines.
- Risk of chemical burns. Ammonia is a highly toxic chemical. If the liquid inside the bottle comes in contact with your skin, eyes or inside of your nose, it can cause a severe chemical burn.
- Risk of other injury. When some people use smelling salts, it can cause a person’s head to jerk back involuntarily and cause harm to a person with a spinal injury.
- Can mask a head injury. Some athletes use smelling salts to counteract the impact of a head trauma during sports. This can mask dangerous concussive symptoms, resulting in delayed diagnosis. The rapid return to sports from a head injury can only worsen the prognosis.
Reach out to Hotel California by the Sea
We specialize in treating addiction and other co-occurring disorders, such as PTSD. Our Admissions specialists are available to walk you through the best options for treating your addiction.
Treatment For Substance Use Disorder
Today, there is a lack of evidence regarding the safety of the repeated use of smelling salts. While it doesn’t necessarily cause physical addiction, it can cause a psychological reliance for an energy boost and alertness. Overusing these products can lead to tolerance build-up, painful nasal irritation and long-term tissue damage. This can also eventually lead to the development of addiction to other similar substances.
Professional behavioral health program Hotel California by the Sea provides treatments for substance use disorder. We offer treatment at all levels of care, including detox, residential, PHP and IOP. We utilize evidence-based methods such as CBT, DBT and group therapy. Hotel California by the Sea is dedicated to helping clients reach their goals in sobriety and overcome their addiction.
References:
https://health.clevelandclinic.org/smelling-salts
https://www.poison.org/articles/are-smelling-salts-bad-for-you
https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/smelling-salts
https://www.healthline.com/health/are-smelling-salts-bad-for-you
https://www.medpagetoday.com/popmedicine/cultureclinic/111471
