Cocaine was introduced to Europe by Sigmund Freud. Not a lot’a people know that. But old Siggy, psychoanalyst and collector of old Vienna, on his travels was given a coca plant somewhere in South America, and told that by making ‘tea’ with its leaves, it would give him a cure for fatigue to enable him to work longer. And guess what? It worked. Freud would be buzzing round all night working on his books and theories. Which is what coke-heads did until Studio 54 was built about 80 years later.

But Freud also noted (ever the scientist and genius) that when he so imbibed, his tongue would get a bit numb. And rather than just ignoring the phenomenon, he took it to his mates at the hospital and pretty much ‘invented’ the local anaesthetic. In fact his first mate was an ophthalmologist, an eye doctor and previously, all eye surgery was carried out sans anaesthetic. Eeeeuuuwwww. Good old Freud.

Cocaine then became THE anaesthetic for dentistry too. Novacaine. Was used for years to numb teeth, where previously there was only half a bottle of Burbon or a thump on the head with a stout pole.

Like so many things, cocaine was a wonder product. It was natural, cheap and had fabulous benefits. And at the time it had no ‘baggage’. Warlords didn’t murder over it. Half of America wasn’t addicted to it. Nasal passages were still intact worldwide.

And it was the drug that put the ‘coca’ into cola. Small amounts of a wonderful product that gave you energy and vitality and the feeling of power. Mix that with half a pound of sugar and you have a win-win product. The real thing. Unfortunately it was, for reasons we know now but obviously didn’t back then, somewhat addictive in large quantities. So after several such instances, they replaced the coke with caffeine, left all the sugar and the rest is history.

Unfortunately, not a great history. Because sugar is the real killer. And if its not killing you its giving you diabetes. Or making you, and half the world, obese.

So its not really much of a surprise really that Coca-Cola sponsored ‘research’ into the benefits of fizzy drinks. Under the guise of ‘independent’ enquiries and experiments, at the European Hydration Institute and many other places. And the EHI was fully funded, as a ‘non-profit organisation’ by Coke. All these findings, from universities, from hospitals, from the EHI, all skewed to put soft, fizzy drinks in a favourable light.

Which is why I never believe statistics. Because I always want to know who’s paid for them.

Coca Cola; its the Real Killer. And I’ll still drink it. Just not as much.

Happy Friday

A xxxx