Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site bbncca.ARPA Path: utzoo!linus!bbncca!sdyer From: sdyer@bbncca.ARPA (Steve Dyer) Newsgroups: net.rumor,net.med Subject: Re: The Secret of Coca Cola Message-ID: <586@bbncca.ARPA> Date: Thu, 16-Feb-84 12:01:59 EST Article-I.D.: bbncca.586 Posted: Thu Feb 16 12:01:59 1984 Date-Received: Fri, 17-Feb-84 06:14:25 EST References: <155@ames-lm.UUCP> Organization: Bolt, Beranek and Newman, Cambridge, Ma. Lines: 18 CocaCola's original recipe back at the turn of the century called for coca leaves. Even now, coca leaves with the cocaine removed are part of the recipe. Every now and then someone starts wondering how much cocaine might still unavoidably be in Coke (answer: if any at all, not a physiologically significant amount.) I have NEVER heard that nicotine (or tobacco juice) was part of the recipe. Though we don't know CocaCola's recipe, we can at least attempt a pharmacological "thought experiment." If there was any significant amount of nicotine in Coke, we would expect typical "nicotinic" sympathetic and parasympathetic reactions after drinking it, especially in "Coke fiends." That is, nausea, sweating, increased heart rate and blood pressure. Any stimulant effect of CocaCola seems directly attributable to the caffeine present, and not to any nicotine. -- /Steve Dyer decvax!bbncca!sdyer sdyer@bbncca