The FDA approval of... Meth.

Economics Political Theory
1

Earlier today I stumbled upon an interesting fact: On December 31, 1943, the FDA approved Methamphetamine.

How good is this for a place to build an empirical case for the FDA’s incompetence? It’s easy to go back now and condemn with the benefit of hindsight, but how much exactly was known about the harmful effects at the time? How high would the standards of a private equivalent have to have been in order to catch the problem?

2

A number of meth’s harmful effects contributed to the case that it might make a good weight loss drug. I think the bigger issue is that, IIRC, said approval was never rescinded.

3

Desoxyn (methamphetamine) is a drug used for children (and adults) with ADHD and exogenous obesity. Similar to adderall (amphetamine).