Thalidomide is a sedative created in the 1950s by a West German pharmaceutical company called Chemie Gruenenthal. Originally it was produced to treat morning sickness, and was used a lot by pregnant women. It was advertised to be safe for both mother and child, because as they tested Thalidomide on rats nothing happened to them, no matter how big the dose of Thalidomide was they got. It was the new wonder drug and sold for 4 years in 46 countries across the world until it got pulled from the market in November 1961 due to its teratogenic effects on the fetus.
In the four years Thalidomide was on the market the drug sold almost as well as aspirin in some countries, and in Germany you could even buy it without a prescription. After it was on the market for about two years one million people in West Germany are estimated to have taken the drug daily. Based on how many people took thalidomide it probably solved its original problem to aid morning sickness. …show more content…
10,000 to 12,000 babies worldwide were born with facial deformities, shortened or no arms and legs, and defective organs. Many died due to these circumstances as a baby or child. These defects occurred, because Thalidomide slows the growth of blood vessels, and prevents the growth of arms and legs when the baby is still a fetus. Recent studies have even shown that Thalidomide might go on through generations. In Britain two children with birth defects were born to a Thalidomide victim. Scientists have connected their birth deformities to the teratogenic effects of
In the four years Thalidomide was on the market the drug sold almost as well as aspirin in some countries, and in Germany you could even buy it without a prescription. After it was on the market for about two years one million people in West Germany are estimated to have taken the drug daily. Based on how many people took thalidomide it probably solved its original problem to aid morning sickness. …show more content…
10,000 to 12,000 babies worldwide were born with facial deformities, shortened or no arms and legs, and defective organs. Many died due to these circumstances as a baby or child. These defects occurred, because Thalidomide slows the growth of blood vessels, and prevents the growth of arms and legs when the baby is still a fetus. Recent studies have even shown that Thalidomide might go on through generations. In Britain two children with birth defects were born to a Thalidomide victim. Scientists have connected their birth deformities to the teratogenic effects of