Jean Adrien Helvétius (1662–1727), Pierre-Joseph Pelletier (1788–1842)
Long before Portuguese explorers arrived in Brazil, the indigenous people used ipecac, a dried root, to treat diarrhea. Missionaries rapidly carried back news of this miraculous drug to Europe. In 1682, Jean Adrien Helvétius, a Parisian-based physician, administered his secret remedy to Louis XIV, whose son was suffering from a severe and prolonged case of dysentery. The concoction worked, and Helvétius was richly rewarded in exchange for divulging his secret ipecac-containing formula. In 1817, French chemist Pierre Joseph Pelletier extracted emetine, the most important of several alkaloids, from the root.
Although it had been used for centuries to treat dysentery, ipecac was judged by many authorities to be without value. As it turned out, ipecac is highly effective for treating dysentery caused by ameba (amebiasis) but not by bacteria. Its benefits were, unfortunately, accompanied by side effects including severe gastrointestinal upset, nausea, and vomiting.
Cough medicines are of two types: antitussives that suppress coughs and expectorants that liquefy and clear mucus from the airways. For many years, ipecac was used as an expectorant, but as with other expectorants, past and present, its effectiveness is unproven.
Starting in the 1960s, all parents were urged to keep a bottle of syrup of ipecac in their medicine chest to induce vomiting and empty their child’s stomach of ingested poisonous substances. That all changed two decades later when parents were told to discard the drug. Why the revised thinking? It turns out that, while ipecac effectively provokes vomiting within 20–30 minutes, it does more harm than good when corrosive chemicals are ingested or when individuals are experiencing seizures or are not fully conscious. Its regular use by bulimics has led to potential heart problems and even death. Today, authorities recommend that the American Association of Poison Control Centers be immediately contacted at 1-800-222-1222 in the event of poisoning.
SEE ALSO Theriac of Mithridates (c. 65 BCE), Alkaloids (1806).
While serving the longest reign in European history (1643–1715), the “Sun King,” Louis XIV, consolidated the absolute power of the king, advanced France as the leading European power, expanded its overseas empire, and was a patron of the arts. However, in the process, he impoverished France. Ipecac was used to successfully treat the king’s son, who was stricken with a potentially fatal case of dysentery.