The Anecdote Bin

THE Insider's Newsletter offers a report on barbiturates, amphetamines, energizers and the like. European doctors recently looked into the problem after a rash of auto-accident investigations showed the drivers to be sober but not in complete control of their senses. The conclusion reached was that pills can be even more harmful when combined with other substances. Example: Two hundred young Germans were given barbiturates and, six hours later, half a liter of beer. Tests then showed that the subjects did badly on self-control exercises. As for the energy-boosting drugs, some can produce an effect so much like alcoholic intoxication that the user's road performance can become unpredictable. The grimmest conclusion, the article says, is that "for all the billions of pills sold, doctors are still pretty much in the dark as to what complicated chemical actions and interactions they cause inside the body."