Quinine, Malaria, and Summer Cocktails (Drinks For Public Health Nerds)
Quinine, the original treatment and prophylaxis for uncomplicated malaria, is derived from the bark of the cinchona tree. Quinine is a bittering agent added to many summer cocktail ingredients. Here are some fun facts:
- Quinine is added to tonic water, Pimm’s No. 1 Cup, and various bitters
- At the bar, tonic water valves are often marked “Q” for quinine
- British colonials in India mixed quinine with gin, creating the “gin and tonic”
- Quinine exhibits fluorescent properties under black light (check the tonic water in your cupboard)
- While quinine is safe in small doses, it poses some harmful side effects at high doses (See Cinchonism), which is part of the reason it has largely been phased out as a treatment for malaria in favor drugs with fewer side effects (the other reason being that mosquitoes have grown resistant to quinine)
- Enjoy quinine in a Pimm’s No. 1 cup (the official drink of Wimbledon) or a Gin and Tonic and bore your friends with these anecdotes
