4 ms·

Kind of a side thought but we have kind of a strange cultural definition of what constitutes a drug. There are plenty of common foods which have physiological a

Kind of a side thought but we have kind of a strange cultural definition of what constitutes a drug. There are plenty of common foods which have physiological and neurological affects.

WillPostForFood 9y ago
Really, all foods have physiological and neurological effects. I wouldn't say the cultural definition of what constitutes a drug is strange, more like it has a very large grey area. The more more tangible the effect, or the more synthetic, the more likely it is people would call it a drug. You could probably get most people to agree caffeine is a drug, you'd have a harder time with sugar.
- kofejnik 9y ago
  ... which seems very un-logical to me, since sugar addiction is quite real and quite bad for your health, unlike caffeine
  - virtualwhys 9y ago
    Having recently (3 months ago) stopped a 20 year daily coffee habit, I would be inclined to say that caffeine is not at all good for your health. Just the stress on the heart and nervous system alone is enough to offset any supposed benefit (from this perspective I'd say there are none, it's just getting hopped up on another drug, albeit a very much culturally accepted one in most parts of the world). Concentrated sugars taken in on a regular basis are also harmful to one's health. I guess live like the ancients (i.e. before alcohol, coffee, tabacco, white sugar, etc. came into being) is a pretty good recipe for optimal health.
    - circlefavshape 9y ago
      "Daily coffee habit"? How much coffee per day?
      - virtualwhys 9y ago
        For about 10 years, 2 per day, basically triple espressos (barring bed ridden state, without exception, every day). The last 5 years I cut back to one per day. Probably like a cigarette smoker giving up smoking, the thought of getting jacked up on caffeine is not at all appealing.
    - kofejnik 9y ago
      There basically never was 'before drugs and alcohol', beer dates back to at least 9500 BC, and coca leaf chewing shouldn't be much younger. As for coffee, according to heart.org, "moderate coffee drinking (1–2 cups per day) doesn't seem to be harmful"
      - virtualwhys 9y ago
        > moderate coffee drinking (1–2 cups per day) doesn't seem to be harmful Probably depends on the strength of the coffee, mine were more along the lines of Turkish than Folgers instant. Definitely could feel heart constriction at times. re: before drugs and alcohol, sure, the ancient ones reference is more metaphorical than any historical timeline.
      - PhasmaFelis 9y ago
        Early beer was much, much weaker than what we have today. In a lot of times and places beer was the primary means of hydration--safer than dirty water--but people weren't staggering around drunk all the time.
        wcummings 9y ago
        Alcohols intoxicating effects were almost certainly discovered before its usefulness as a disinfectant.
        PhasmaFelis 9y ago
        Sure, but you don't need to know about disinfectant to notice that people who drink the water from the stream get sick and people who drink beer don't. (Nor need to realize that it's because the people and animals upstream are shitting in it. Not a big problem for hunter-gatherers, but it would have become an issue once large-scale agriculture became a thing.)
    - wcummings 9y ago
      Animals will eat "rotting" fruit to catch a buzz, there was never a time "before alcohol".
- mowenz 9y ago
  I think what he means is the word Drug that is used in the War on Drugs. I.E. street speed (amphetamine) is a Drug while adderall (amphetamine) is medication. A lot of people in this country make that--indeed strange--distinction. The way we got here was fro government-private partnerships that created a cultural willing to accept the double think requires for G-P to profit off Drugs and medications.

Kind of a side thought but we have kind of a strange cultural definition of what constitutes a drug. There are plenty of common foods which have physiological and neurological affects.

WillPostForFood 9y ago

Really, all foods have physiological and neurological effects. I wouldn't say the cultural definition of what constitutes a drug is strange, more like it has a very large grey area. The more more tangible the effect, or the more synthetic, the more likely it is people would call it a drug. You could probably get most people to agree caffeine is a drug, you'd have a harder time with sugar.

kofejnik 9y ago
... which seems very un-logical to me, since sugar addiction is quite real and quite bad for your health, unlike caffeine
- virtualwhys 9y ago
  Having recently (3 months ago) stopped a 20 year daily coffee habit, I would be inclined to say that caffeine is not at all good for your health. Just the stress on the heart and nervous system alone is enough to offset any supposed benefit (from this perspective I'd say there are none, it's just getting hopped up on another drug, albeit a very much culturally accepted one in most parts of the world). Concentrated sugars taken in on a regular basis are also harmful to one's health. I guess live like the ancients (i.e. before alcohol, coffee, tabacco, white sugar, etc. came into being) is a pretty good recipe for optimal health.
  - circlefavshape 9y ago
    "Daily coffee habit"? How much coffee per day?
    - virtualwhys 9y ago
      For about 10 years, 2 per day, basically triple espressos (barring bed ridden state, without exception, every day). The last 5 years I cut back to one per day. Probably like a cigarette smoker giving up smoking, the thought of getting jacked up on caffeine is not at all appealing.
  - kofejnik 9y ago
    There basically never was 'before drugs and alcohol', beer dates back to at least 9500 BC, and coca leaf chewing shouldn't be much younger. As for coffee, according to heart.org, "moderate coffee drinking (1–2 cups per day) doesn't seem to be harmful"
    - virtualwhys 9y ago
      > moderate coffee drinking (1–2 cups per day) doesn't seem to be harmful Probably depends on the strength of the coffee, mine were more along the lines of Turkish than Folgers instant. Definitely could feel heart constriction at times. re: before drugs and alcohol, sure, the ancient ones reference is more metaphorical than any historical timeline.
    - PhasmaFelis 9y ago
      Early beer was much, much weaker than what we have today. In a lot of times and places beer was the primary means of hydration--safer than dirty water--but people weren't staggering around drunk all the time.
      - wcummings 9y ago
        Alcohols intoxicating effects were almost certainly discovered before its usefulness as a disinfectant.
        PhasmaFelis 9y ago
        Sure, but you don't need to know about disinfectant to notice that people who drink the water from the stream get sick and people who drink beer don't. (Nor need to realize that it's because the people and animals upstream are shitting in it. Not a big problem for hunter-gatherers, but it would have become an issue once large-scale agriculture became a thing.)
  - wcummings 9y ago
    Animals will eat "rotting" fruit to catch a buzz, there was never a time "before alcohol".
mowenz 9y ago
I think what he means is the word Drug that is used in the War on Drugs. I.E. street speed (amphetamine) is a Drug while adderall (amphetamine) is medication. A lot of people in this country make that--indeed strange--distinction. The way we got here was fro government-private partnerships that created a cultural willing to accept the double think requires for G-P to profit off Drugs and medications.