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| | Encyclopedia article on Drug [EncycloZine] (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-08) |
 | | The word "drug" is etymologically derived from the Dutch/Low German word "droog", which means "dry", since in the past, most drugs were dried plant parts. |
 | | The term "drug" is necessarily a vague one, being defined by intent: for example, foods consumed for normal metabolism are not generally considered "drugs", but the same foods consumed for a more specific purpose (such as the use of alcohol as a depressant or caffeine as a stimulant) may be. |
 | | When the patent for a drug runs out, a generic drug (some known as simply a "generic") is usually synthesized and released by competing companies, causing the price to drop markedly. |
| encyclozine.com /Drug (872 words) |
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