What Is a Drug Defined as Being?

Published March 28, 2014

Question by jacktroughton: What is a drug defined as being?
What are the qualifying parameters for a substance/process being called a “drug”?

Best answer:

Answer by El Americano
Definition of DRUG
1
a obsolete : a substance used in dyeing or chemical operations b : a substance used as a medication or in the preparation of medication c according to the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (1) : a substance recognized in an official pharmacopoeia or formulary (2) : a substance intended for use in the diagnosis, cure, mitigation, treatment, or prevention of disease (3) : a substance other than food intended to affect the structure or function of the body (4) : a substance intended for use as a component of a medicine but not a device or a component, part, or accessory of a device
2
: a commodity that is not salable or for which there is no demand —used in the phrase drug on the market
3
: something and often an illegal substance that causes addiction, habituation, or a marked change in consciousness

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