Cocaine – most people today know it as an incredibly addictive drug.  In fact, national statistics show nearly half of all drug-related emergency room visits are due to cocaine abuse.  But, cocaine used to be regarded as a “miracle drug.”  In this interview with New York Times Bestselling author Howard Markel, learn how cocaine was once thought to cure everything from morphine addiction to flatulence.  Many late 19th century doctors not only prescribed the drug to family, friends and patients, they experimented with it on themselves searching for medical breakthroughs.  Two renowned fathers of medicine, Sigmund Freud and William Halsted (credited with several advancements still used in modern surgery including the invention of rubber surgical gloves) quickly turned into “accidental” cocaine addicts as a result of their research.  In this interview, Markel reveals their secret drug addicted lives, discusses the continued problems of cocaine use and warns agains the next “miracle drug.”