The Ypsilanti daily press. (Ypsilanti, Mich.) 1928-1962, 1941-05-16

Treatment, but the enthusiast usu-
ally ends up his sermon with some
such statement as that doctors
prefer to use poisonous drugs
rather than these natural methods
Of treatment.
Now, the fact Is that drugs are
Just as natural methods Of treat
ment as water and air and light
and they still remain the most use
full means of treatment in the doc
tors armory. Why isn't the action
of a plant as much one of Natures
treatments as the action Of food?
There is nothing superstitious
about the action Of drugs. They
have been, for years, studied in
scientific laboratories and their
use is based upon the most exast
science.
Modern Use of Drugs
A good account of the place Of
drugs in modern medicine is a re-
cent book Magic in a Bottle, by
Milton Silverman publishers
The Macmillan Company, New
York, 1941). 1t recounts in popu-
lar and semi-fctional style num-
Der Of discoveries Of the valuable
drugs which we are using today.
The first chapter is on the "Con-
quest Of Pain" and recounts the
development Of our knowledge Of
opium and morphine. Other chap
ters are on the alkaloids, an old
housewives recipe (digitalis or
foxglove) cocaine, the fever fight
ers (aspirin), the hypnotics 1.-THE
barbitals), and finally 1The Red
Assassin the story of Prof.
Domagk and sulfanilamide.
Each Of these stories illustrates
certain principles in the develop
ment of the usefulness of a drug.
In the case Of the discovery Of
the antipyretic drugs which are
so valuable in reducing fever, and
especially in rheumatism, they
were developed by Prof. Hermann
Kobe at the University of Leip-
zig, at the suggestion Of Prof.
Thiersch. Thiersch knew that
carbolic acid would kill germs
but, Of course, it was dangerous
TO give internally. Kobe suggest.
ed that carbolic acid could be mod.
flied to produce salicylic acid and
that salicylic acid in the body
would release carbolic acid slowly.
They found that the principal &C.
ton of salicylic acid was to reduce
the temperature of a patient, nc
matter what infection he had
From this start they made also
antipyrine and phenacetin.
In the course of time they
stopped using carbolic acid and
used crude aniline dye as the
source from which they obtained
their drugs.
When Kobe produced salicylic
acid, another derivative was OBJ
tanned called acetyl-salicylic acid.
Nobody paid any attention TO this
until 1899-so recent is our knowl-
edge of certain drugs. Then the
staff chemist, Felix Hoffman,, Of
the Bayer Company, found that
acetyl-salicylic acid would help
his fathers rheumatism, as well
as reduce temperature; it was
less irritating TO the stomach and
less poisonous generally; larger
doses Of it could be given. Be-
cause it is found in concentrated
amounts in spiraea plants, it is
now known as aspirin"
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
D. B.:-"Will you please tell
In your column if, after years Of
use, there are harmful or habit
forming qualities in the following
formula: sodium acetyl-salicylate,
calcium-sodium phosphates, sodi-
UNI bicarbonate, sodium citrate?"
Answer-No. This is a simple
mixture Of aspirin with alkalis,
which is good for functional head
aches and indigestion; possibly
for arthritis.