The company Bayer is famous for inventing aspirin in 1898, which is arguably one of the world’s most beloved brands, and for good reason. But I was surprised to learn that just two weeks earlier, the same three guys who gave the world aspirin also created Bayer’s other big brand, heroin, which was marketed for about eight years as the world’s best cough medicine.
From Andrew Essex on his book about the End of Advertising. Hat tip: John Maeda.
Must have made for some interesting business meetings for anyone on the World’s Best Cough medicine while also drinking Coca-Cola in the late 1800’s.
Their relationship with the Nazis is fascinating as well.
Bayer started as IG Farben funded by Hitler. They created Zyklon-B, the gas used to in their words to, “exterminate” Jews.
Today Bayer Crop Sciences creates new “____cides” eg; herbicides, fungicides, pesticides to kill smaller biology and rid our food of pesky nutrients. The FDA facilitates their death and others like Agent Orange, now “Roundup” by (Monsanto) and Chlorpyrifos by DOW and others and Glyphosate. These chemicals are in our water supplies. You have them in your body now disrupting your endocrine system.
Ironically, the recent discovery of our endocannabinoid system, responsible in part for regulating these systems has been malnourished since removing Cannabinoids from our diet.
Purdue Pharmaceuticals, the folks responsible for the proliferation of heroin in the US visa vie Oxycontin and the Sinaloa Cartel were successful at funding the AMA medical colleges and Universities in America. Somehow these schools forgot to include “whole plant medicines” in their curricula. Cannabidiol and hundreds of other compounds that could potentially do the most help at protecting and healing our systems from more common drugs and chemicals are also prohibited by law by the FDA.
The world’s largest chemical companies and the world’s largest drug companies are tightly integrated in our society. And if you think this is interesting, study sugar and cancer. Or better yet, try life without sugar for one week. Extremely difficult, yet way easier than going without glyphosate for a week.
Sending love and empathy to the folks that buy their stuff and pay their taxes with money from these companies.
Bayer doesn’t start as IG Farben. IG Farben was founded in 1925 after consolidation of several german companies.
Bayer was founded in 1863.
Bayer responsible not only “__cides”. First synthetic antibiotic “Prontosil” ( sulfanialamides ) was born in 1932 in Bayer’s laboratory. It saved millions of lives, including life of Winston Churchill.
The “author” of Prontosil, Gerhard Domagk,who discovered his antibacterial properties,was awarded with Nobel Prize in 1939. Nazi forced him to refuse the Prize and sent him in to the prison.
Not-branded acetylsalicylic acid has more “romantic story”. It was first discovered by chemist Charles Frédéric Gerhardt. He tried to find a better medicine for his father, suffering from rheumatic disease.
There are bad and good people in every company and every industry.
Asprin “or” Heroin?
I would hint you towards: Let’s get back to the roots and have a cup of tea. A cup of willow bark tea, to be more specific. Because that’s where Aspirin started: http://www.medindia.net/patients/lifestyleandwellness/health-benefits-of-willow-bark.htm
And concerning Bayer (and Monsanto) … and “whole plant medicines”.
How about Open Source Seeds? Then this way please: http://www.opensourceseeds.org/en 🙂
Found the initiative and site just some days ago.
That’s great transl8or and a clear indication of the way the culture in whole plant medicines have existed and continue to work. We’re open sourcing everything in whole plant medicine. Willow Bark… The author underscores everything that’s wrong with the pharmaceutical industry in a few sentences. Thanks for sharing…
With this kind of brand association, I can understand why he wrote a book about the end of advertising.
A doctor gave me morphine for treating a cough once. It’s quite effective.