Distillations magazine

In the 19th century, chemical oblivion replaced liquor, opiates, and bleeding as the numbing agent of choice for surgeons.

Insulin was first used to treat diabetes in the 1920s. Since then doctors have used a multitude of tests to screen for the disease.

Absinthe, an alcoholic drink introduced to France in the 1840s, developed a decadent though violent reputation.

Prontosil Rubrum was the first drug to cure bacterial infections and the first of many sulfa drugs.

In the late 19th century cod-liver oil was proclaimed the cure for many ailments. One problem: the oil’s foul taste.

Malaria and the benefits and pitfalls of government-funded biomedical research.

Are salt alternatives scarier than the substance they are replacing? A brief history of a “terrifying” food.

An 1828 murder trial provides insight into the moral ambiguity of forensic science and scientific testimony.

David Healy reviews Nicholas Rasmussen’s On Speed: The Many Lives of Amphetamine.

Aspirin has had a long history as a pain reliever—2,000 years of history. But only in the 1970s did scientists begin to uncover its chemical secrets.

Interactions between the pharmaceutical industry, the biomedical sciences, and legislators is a longstanding hot topic in Washington.

The history of pasteurization and the controversy surrounding it demonstrate the complexity of milk as a chemical substance.

Fatal results of the lax safety standards of yesterday provide powerful lessons in the importance of safety in today’s labs.

The rise and fall of hormone replacement therapy.

In the 18th century Joseph Priestley and others developed artificially carbonated mineral water, uniting the therapeutic powers of an ancient natural restorative with the emerging science of modern chemistry.

With the curiosity of a scientist and the personal motivation of having lost family members to cancer and bacterial infection, Elion fulfilled a vital role in the fight against disease.

Our long history with a potent poison.