Introduction

Absinthe – a bitter spirit containing wormwood (Artemisia absinthium L.) (Figure 1) and other herbs – was one of the most popular alcoholic beverages of late 19th century Europe. The emerald green drink was consumed by people from all walks of life, including the bohemian upper class, artists, poets and intellectuals. While the lower classes celebrated l'heure verte (the green hour) in numerous bars and cafés, painters and poets created famous paintings and poems dedicated to the "green fairy." Absinthe was popular in fin-de-siècle Paris and la vie bohème of Prague. The most remarkable celebrity known as an absinthe drinker is the Dutch post-impressionist painter Vincent van Gogh (1853–1890, Figure 2), whose illness is still a matter of debate among neurologists and psychiatrists [1-7]. Other famous painters of the time, such as Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec and Paul Gaugin, and illustrious poets like Oscar Wilde, Charles Baudelaire, and Edgar Allan Poe were all fond of absinthe.

Because absinthe consumption reached excessive and alarming proportions at the turn of the 19th century, many European governments, as well as the U.S. administration, successively banned the icon of la vie bohème by several prohibition acts. Absinthe was used as an easy target of the temperance movement with the aim of later prohibiting alcohol in general. But absinthe remained a singularity as the only kind of alcoholic beverage with a long-term ban. In some European countries (e.g. UK, Spain, Czech Republic), however, the "green fairy" survived, but consumption was comparatively low. The European Council enacted in 1988 the directive "on the approximation of the laws of the Member States relating to flavorings for use in foodstuffs and to source materials for their production," that re-allowed wormwood as ingredient of alcoholic beverages. However, maximum limits of the wormwood ingredient thujone (Figure 3), which was speculated to be the most probable cause for absinthism, were issued [8].

Because of this change of policy, absinthe has seen a recent resurgence. In contrast to the social, legal and medical problems of the late 19th century, today the image of the "green fairy" has markedly changed, but still remains titillating. Today's so called "new absinthe" is offered as a newly fashionable, exclusive drink for yuppie parties with claimed properties ranging from spiritual elucidation to aphrodisiac stimulation – with corresponding pricing. In parallel, a fan club within the internet community has emerged. Absinthe can be purchased via the internet from various countries worldwide, making it possible to receive it in countries where it is not legally available. Moreover, numerous recipes for the self-production of absinthe are available on the internet. To date, it is unclear if the re-licensing of absinthe will cause similar or even new and different forensic, medical and social problems as it did in the late 1800's.

This article provides information on the history of absinthe and a prime constituent, thujone. Medical and toxicological aspects experienced and discovered before the prohibition of absinthe are discussed in detail, along with their impact on the current situation. It is the intention of the authors to provide a comprehensive overview of this topic of multi-faceted interest and to discuss this issue objectively.

Previous Page

Next Page