this post was submitted on 29 Jan 2024
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Yeah but wasn't the coke of old meant to be a medicine or tonic of some sort?
Basically all illegal drugs started as legal drugs aka medicine (Opium, Morphine, Heroin, etc). The distinction is a relatively recent development. Even today a drug store is a reputable business. A drug den not so much.
Yeah Coca Cola was originally a "nerve tonic". Coca leaves/extract were a regular ingredient of medicines, tonics, and even toothpaste.
Coca cola to this day still uses 'vegetable extract'. What is the secret ingredient?
It's actually not quite an exception, because cocaine is a Schedule II drug (can be prescribed as a vasoconstrictor or topical anesthetic) and the Maywood plant is the only facility licensed to produce pharmaceutical grade cocaine in the US.
So the coca leaf extract they sell to Coca-Cola is technically a byproduct.