Any study of drug design, development, and use today must note the basic distinctions now made between the two large categories of chemical compounds: those that have some medical benefit and those used primarily for recreational and/or non-therapeutic purposes. Of course, some compounds can fit into both categories, to one degree or another. Morphine, for example, is a valuable and important medical tool for the control of pain and, therefore, a “good” drug in some respects. It can also be used (in its natural state or an altered form known as heroin) as a dangerous, recreational, and therefore “bad” drug.
In the United States today, the legal standard by which “good” and “bad” drugs are now measured is the Controlled Substances Act of 1970. This act divides all known drugs into one of five classes, known as schedules. The primary criterion by which a compound is placed into one or another schedule is its potential for abuse, that is, its potential for addictive or otherwise harmful nonmedical applications. The Controlled Substances Act provides detailed descriptions of, restrictions on, and penalties for the use of chemical compounds in each of the five schedules. These schedules are defined as follows:
- Schedule I: Any drug with a high potential for abuse, that has no currently accepted medical use in treatment in the United States, and that lacks any accepted safety for use under medical supervision.
- Schedule II: Any drug with a high potential for abuse, that has a currently accepted medical use in treatment in the United States, with a potential for abuse that may lead to severe psychological or physical dependence. Understanding the Way Drugs Work in the Body
- Schedule III: Any drug with a potential for abuse less than the drugs or other substances in schedules I and II, that has a currently accepted medical use in treatment in the United States, and for which abuse of the drug may lead to moderate or low physical dependence or high psychological dependence.
- Schedule IV: Any drug with a low potential for abuse relative to the drugs or other substances in Schedule III, that has a currently accepted medical use in treatment in the United States, and for which abuse of the drug may lead to limited physical dependence or psychological dependence relative to the drugs in schedule III.
- Schedule V: Any drug that has a low potential for abuse relative to the drugs in schedule IV, that has a currently accepted medical use in treatment in the United States, and for which abuse of the drug may lead to limited physical dependence or psychological dependence relative to the drugs in schedule IV.
In principle, the Controlled Substances Act provides a clear system for distinguishing between drugs intended for beneficial purposes and those with few or no beneficial purposes. In practice, that distinction is not always so clear. New drugs developed to treat some medical condition may also have properties that make them attractive as recreational drugs. Thus, some “good” drugs end up being used for “bad” purposes. One of the challenges to the drug industry and the law enforcement community today is finding ways of preventing drugs with useful medical purposes from being adopted by recreational drug users for illegal purposes.
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Ref: chemistry of drug by David E. Newton, 2007.
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In the United States today, the legal standard by which “good” and “bad” drugs are now measured is the Controlled Substances Act of 1970. This act divides all known drugs into one of five classes, known as schedules. The primary criterion by which a compound is placed into one or another schedule is its potential for abuse, that is, its potential for addictive or otherwise harmful nonmedical applications. The Controlled Substances Act provides detailed descriptions of, restrictions on, and penalties for the use of chemical compounds in each of the five schedules. These schedules are defined as follows:
- Schedule I: Any drug with a high potential for abuse, that has no currently accepted medical use in treatment in the United States, and that lacks any accepted safety for use under medical supervision.
- Schedule II: Any drug with a high potential for abuse, that has a currently accepted medical use in treatment in the United States, with a potential for abuse that may lead to severe psychological or physical dependence. Understanding the Way Drugs Work in the Body
- Schedule III: Any drug with a potential for abuse less than the drugs or other substances in schedules I and II, that has a currently accepted medical use in treatment in the United States, and for which abuse of the drug may lead to moderate or low physical dependence or high psychological dependence.
- Schedule IV: Any drug with a low potential for abuse relative to the drugs or other substances in Schedule III, that has a currently accepted medical use in treatment in the United States, and for which abuse of the drug may lead to limited physical dependence or psychological dependence relative to the drugs in schedule III.
- Schedule V: Any drug that has a low potential for abuse relative to the drugs in schedule IV, that has a currently accepted medical use in treatment in the United States, and for which abuse of the drug may lead to limited physical dependence or psychological dependence relative to the drugs in schedule IV.
In principle, the Controlled Substances Act provides a clear system for distinguishing between drugs intended for beneficial purposes and those with few or no beneficial purposes. In practice, that distinction is not always so clear. New drugs developed to treat some medical condition may also have properties that make them attractive as recreational drugs. Thus, some “good” drugs end up being used for “bad” purposes. One of the challenges to the drug industry and the law enforcement community today is finding ways of preventing drugs with useful medical purposes from being adopted by recreational drug users for illegal purposes.
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Ref: chemistry of drug by David E. Newton, 2007.
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