The history of drug use in London is long and often surprising.
In 1800, for example, one Thomas Jones was awarded a Royal Society
of Arts prize for proving the viability of the commercial cultivation
of opium in Enfield, and in 1902 ladies' morphine tea parties -
where the hostess injected her guests - were reported in The
British Medical Journal.
A 'drug'
can be defined as a substance taken into the body for reasons
other than sustenance, either for health or for pleasure. Many
drugs which began life as medicines are now illegal, and in London
today the use and abuse of drugs has become a major problem.
Drugs:
what should London do? explores the history of drug use in
London. Exhibits include Roman cannabis, Victorian coca leaves
used for the production of cocaine, and a home testing kit for
checking the chemical content of ecstasy. It charts the evolution
of drugs legislation in Britain and asks why some drugs have resisted
legislation. Tobacco was considered by James I a 'stinking loathsome
thing', and gin wreaked havoc among London's poor in the 18th
and 19th centuries. Yet smoking and alcohol continue to be controlled
through licensing laws and taxes.
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The debate
about where to draw the line between acceptable and unacceptable
drug use often focuses on cannabis. The Home Office has recently
granted a special licence for research into the use of cannabis
for sufferers of conditions such as multiple sclerosis. Claims
for its medicinal benefits are nothing new. Queen Victoria was
prescribed cannabis for menstrual cramps; her physician wrote
in The Lancet in 1890 that 'when pure and administered
carefully, cannabis is one of the most useful medicines we possess'.
Drugs:
what should London do? We asked visitors to this web site to contribute
to the drugs debate by responding to a questionnaire. Please click
here for the subsequent results.
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