Interesting how closely the thalidomide tragedy was tied to the almost mercurial rise in the demand for anti anxiety medicine in the 50’s. From Science in Society (click through for link):
“In a post-war era when sleeplessness was prevalent, thalidomide was marketed to a world hooked on tranquilizers and sleeping pills. At the time, one out of seven Americans took them regularly. The demand for sedatives was even higher in some European markets, and the presumed safety of thalidomide, the only non-barbiturate sedative known at the time, gave the drug massive appeal.”
Friedan wrote (Feminine Mystique): ““Many suburban housewives were taking tranquilizers like cough drops. You wake up in the morning, and you feel as if there’s no point in going on another day like this. So you take a tranquilizer because it makes you not care so much that it’s pointless.”
sextoncomp 