Concept in Definition ABC

Quinine is a substance An alkaloid with a white and crystalline appearance that is obtained from the cinchona tree, specifically from its bark. In this way, cinchona, whose scientific name is Cinchona officinalis, gives name to the term quinine.

The cinchona tree is a genuine tree of the jungle Amazonia of Peru and is one of the symbols that can be found in the official Peruvian coat of arms.

Quinine as an alkaloid

An alkaloid is a compound chemical of plants and that fulfills essential functions for their survival. Most alkaloids are used in medicine to relieve pain and, on the other hand, as a psychoactive effect, the alkaloid acts intensely on the mind. Thus, among the best known alkaloids we find quinine, atropine, cocaine, morphine or nicotine.

The healing properties of quinine

It has constancy that quinine was already used in the period before the Incas and was used to cure infections, as an anti-inflammatory substance or to relieve pain and fever.

Over time quinine has been used as a substance to fight malaria or malaria, a

disease which was formerly known as quartan fever. As malaria does not have a definitive cure, drugs made from quinine are still used today.

The history of quinine

Although the use of quinine as a medicine is thousands of years old, it was in the seventeenth century that the Jesuits Spaniards learned of its properties after observing that the natives used it as a healing remedy.

According to the story, a Spanish aristocrat married to the viceroy of Peru (Ana de Osorio, Countess of Chinchón) fell ill from malaria fevers but was cured by dust from the quinine. This caused that on her return to Spain the countess brought with her the bark of the cinchona in great quantity and thus began to be distributed as a healing substance.

Quinine slowly spread as a medicine, but it had the drawback of its bitter taste and due to This is why the British military residing in India started the custom of adding quinine tablets to the Water, for thus its bitter taste was softened. This idea had consequences, since the mixture of quinine and water led to the appearance of a new drink, tonic water, which later it was mixed with gin and the famous gin and tonic was invented, whose slight bitter taste must be attributed to the quinine.

Photo: iStock - Heike Rau

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