Canned Oxygen in Japanese 7-11's?

Japanese convenience stores are set to begin selling canned oxygen at the end of this month, saying they are set to move into the rapidly expanding oxygen market.

Oxygen has gained popularity in the form of "oxygen bars" where a nasal cannula is provided to folks who sit at a, well, bar and inhale the stuff. There's even one close to where I live, which is right between Hicskville and Hillbillytown.

Back to the point. The idea here is to allow inhalers to replentish their oxygen levels anytime they feel a lack of it (I'm not sure how one determines that.) due to stress, fatigue or any other reason. A lack of oxygen is purported to cause yawning and sighing. Normal air has about 21% oxygen, and the canned version will contain about 95%. Each can will have about 35 two-second doses, so a can will last about a week if used properly about five or six times. The canned O2 reportedly brings a feeling of invigoration.

Now here' s where my alarmist side kicks in... If people start using this the way they drink coffee or soda (In other words, way too much, myself included!) they will become addicted to it. When people in the hospital are on oxygen, doctors and nurses are very careful about how much and how long they give it. In fact, O2 is considered a drug; it requires a doctor's order in a hospital setting. (A lot of facilities have a "standing order" for patients with low levels or chest pain, to save time. The doc signs off on it later.) It's a double-edged sword; you need oxygen, so you take a pure form of it which decreases your body's ability to carry and utilize the amount found in normal room air. People who are oxygen dependent cannot live without it; if they are removed from the nasal cannula, their O2 levels drop to below acceptable ranges.

We'll see how this goes, I suppose.