In the year 1844 poppers were first invented/discovered by Antoine Jerme Balard, a chemist from France who first synthesized Amyl Nitrite. Balard was also famous for discovering the chemical element Bromine another evaporating liquid with the symbol Br, the discovery brought him prestige and helped him to become the chair of chemistry at the faculty of sciences in Paris.
Many years later in 1867 in Scotland Sir Thomas Lauder Brunton began to treat people with the condition Angina with Amyl Nitrite when he discovered he could increase the blood flow to the heart and ease pain as Amyl was able to dilate the arteries to the heart. Patients got there amyl nitrite in glass ampules covered by a cotton mesh that they could snap when needed and inhale the vapours through the nose. The snapping sound or 'popping' sound when the ampule broke gave rise to the name poppers still used to this day though now due to various legislation it is often known by many terms and alternatives such as, video head cleaner, leather cleaner, room odorizers, liquid incense, room aroma, liquid aroma and rush etc.
In America in the 1920s the drug company Burroughs Wellcome Co was licensed to sell Amyl Nitrite by the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) the medical grade Amyl was sold on a prescription only basis for suffers of angina, then In 1964 the FDA removed the necessity for a prescription and it is around this time that it emerged in the Gay clubs of the east side night clubs in New York
Jump to the 1970s and the hip American kids have discovered a cheap high and with the emergence of pounding disco music amyl helps pound their hearts and brains to the disco beats, the manufactures and entrepreneurs react quickly packaging and producing what was once taken in small metal containers on the dance floors of the gay bars and discos of the 1960s into slick manufactured bottles with names like Locker Room, Rush and Jungle Juice.
One of the pioneers is a guy called Clifford Hassings a medical student. Clifford discovers amyl nitrite when it first emerges in the discos of LA and develops Butyl Nitrite primarily for his own use but later selling it to friends in small brown bottles with the label Locker Room as he thought it smelt like a men's locker room! Soon the demand grew and Hassing started the company West American Industries in Los Angles mass producing locker room and shipping it out all over the USA and beyond to be sold in clubs, record stalls, pharmacies, sex shops and even gift shops! Other entrepreneurs were quick to spot the opportunity and most notably PWD or Pacific Western Distributing Corp based in San Francisco by Jay Freezer produces RUSH as the main competitor to Locker Room. Already a very wealthy man Freezer invests a small fortune on a massive advertising campaign for Rush making it the biggest brand in the USA to this day if not the world. In the 1980s after Freezers death the company is sold to Joe Miller and his company Great Lakes Products who continue to produce Rush and associated products under the PWD name. The true size of the poppers market is underestimated but it is massive and Joe Miller becomes the biggest advertiser within the gay community spending millions of dollars advertising his products mainly Rush, Miller aware of the legal implications and fearful of government regulation becomes one of the largest financial contributors to the Democrat party in America mainly through the Indiana Democrats where Great Lakes Products is based, this in the hope of steering the FDA away from regulation and successfully slowing down the governments regulation of the products especially Butyl Nitrite as the manufactures cleverly market them not as poppers and often with 'Not for human consumption' printed on the labels. With the HIV scare of the 80s and the incorrect connection between HIV and poppers being made originally by the National Jewish Center for Immunology and respiratory disease, Miller himself a gay man donated many millions to HIV research and treatment though this is possibly in a attempt to disprove the connection between poppers and HIV which at the time will almost certainly result in Butyl being made illegal.
Unfortunately in 2009 the US goverment came down on Pac West and in mysterious circumstances Joe Miller was later found dead at this home. At first the press reported it as suicide but this was later retracted and since then there has been a some what of a media blackout and the Millers death remains a mystery. PAC West closed and now despite many users mistakenly claiming to have original no fake it rush (as has always been the case hence the no fake it campaign) there are many company's around the world producing Rush with the chemicals being used varying from manufacturer to manufacturer some using true Amyl Nitrite and others using its cheaper cousin Butyl Nitrite and most recently pentyl nitrite.
Poppers emerged too in the UK and Europe in the gay discos of the 1970s and followed much the same route as America with local entrepreneurs setting up business and producing brands like Liquid Gold and Pure Gold. In 1999 the medicines Control Agency took some of the manufactures in the UK to court for selling Isobutyl Nitrite, in a landmark judgment the court decided that under the brand names they were sold such as Liquid Gold Aroma etc the products were not Amyl Nitrite and therefore not true poppers and could be legally sold. A later EU ruling made Isobutyl illegal throughout the UK and Europe so manufactures switched to Isopropyl Nitrite now widely available.
In 2016 the UK government again attempted to ban poppers including them in the Psychoactive Substances Act a bill meant to outlaw so called legal highs such as spice. In a last minute reprieve after outrage in the gay community and government lawyers fearing a legal battle with the manufactures would bring down the whole psychoactive substances bill after the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs released a statement saying after a comprehensive study poppers where not psychoactive and did not stimulate or depress the central nervous system, poppers were made exempt from the bill with the British home office and minister Karen Bradley MP stating, "poppers have these unique indirect effects", and an "exemption for the alkyl nitrites group under the Act on the basis of their beneficial and relationship effects." the full statement can be read here: Karen bradley Statement
The popularity of poppers style aromas remains to this day. The gay community especially fond of there enhancement of sex with the increase of blood pressure relaxing the anus and easing discomfort during anal sex but many others both gay and straight enjoy heightened sexual excitement and pleasure from their use. And still it also remains a nightclub phenomena all over the world with new generations discovering its properties year after year.
PoppersRus advocates the safe use of our products under the website terms and conditions and urges all customers to stick to Legal Notice & Safety Guidelines advice on our website here: Legal Notice
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