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Oct. 22nd, 2004 03:57 am![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
pengke.livejournal.com posting in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
multiplicity_archivesThere was a recent post about "memory erasing" drugs that may have caused some consternation with some of you. This is a good example of why it is important to be careful where you get your information. The article the poster received his information from was not a medical source, the article's author clearly had a limited understanding of the drug in question, and the article itself was designed to incite paranoia. Having “science” in the name does not mean that you are reading a reliable source.
The real story is that there's a drug called propranolol. It's a blood pressure medication that works by reducing levels of epinephrine/adrenaline. Millions of people are safely taking this drug every day without any negative affects on their memory. Now, most of the drugs on the market today are being monitored for new side effects and potential drug interactions. The studies that were monitoring propranolol discovered that people on the drug who were in a traumatic event had a significantly lower rate of PTSD than people not taking propranolol.
Previous research into memory has shown that a high level of adrenaline at the time of a memory increases the details that you remember and the strength of the memory. So when propranolol is in your system, you don’t have the high levels of epinephrine and the memory is not as severe. This does not mean that you do not remember what happens. It simply means that the memory is not as overpowering and it might not be as clear as it would be without the drug.
Currently, there are studies going on in emergency rooms where patients are voluntarily being given propranolol after accidents or other traumatic events. There is nothing to support the idea that adults will ever be given this drug against their will. An article that does a good job explaining this can be found here: http://www.acfnewsource.org/science/memory_pill.html I also verified my information in a couple of neurological articles on the subject.
Similarly, it is important to remember that not every drug that is developed is put into use. Some drugs or medical procedures are deemed unethical to use. In many cases, the process through which the drug is developed is more valuable than the drug itself. For example, if a drug was developed that could erase someone’s memories; it would provide a tremendous amount of information on how memories work even if the drug was never approved for use on humans.
The real story is that there's a drug called propranolol. It's a blood pressure medication that works by reducing levels of epinephrine/adrenaline. Millions of people are safely taking this drug every day without any negative affects on their memory. Now, most of the drugs on the market today are being monitored for new side effects and potential drug interactions. The studies that were monitoring propranolol discovered that people on the drug who were in a traumatic event had a significantly lower rate of PTSD than people not taking propranolol.
Previous research into memory has shown that a high level of adrenaline at the time of a memory increases the details that you remember and the strength of the memory. So when propranolol is in your system, you don’t have the high levels of epinephrine and the memory is not as severe. This does not mean that you do not remember what happens. It simply means that the memory is not as overpowering and it might not be as clear as it would be without the drug.
Currently, there are studies going on in emergency rooms where patients are voluntarily being given propranolol after accidents or other traumatic events. There is nothing to support the idea that adults will ever be given this drug against their will. An article that does a good job explaining this can be found here: http://www.acfnewsource.org/science/memory_pill.html I also verified my information in a couple of neurological articles on the subject.
Similarly, it is important to remember that not every drug that is developed is put into use. Some drugs or medical procedures are deemed unethical to use. In many cases, the process through which the drug is developed is more valuable than the drug itself. For example, if a drug was developed that could erase someone’s memories; it would provide a tremendous amount of information on how memories work even if the drug was never approved for use on humans.
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Date: 2004-10-22 05:18 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2004-10-22 10:10 pm (UTC)~ Fenrir