What was diacetylmorphine (heroin) introduced as?

• A. A safer pain reliever than morphine; introduced in 1898
• B. A cough suppressant
• C. An antibiotic
• D. A vitamin

Answer: (A)

Heroin was placed into medical use as a safer, more potent analgesic than morphine, introduced in 1898. The idea behind its marketing was that adding acetyl groups would make it easier to absorb and cross into the brain, so a smaller dose could provide effective pain relief with supposedly fewer addictive risks. This belief led Bayer to promote diacetylmorphine as a safer alternative to morphine, which is why the correct answer points to analgesia and the 1898 introduction date. It’s not an antibiotic or a vitamin, and while it was used as a cough suppressant in some contexts, the historical emphasis for its introduction was as a pain reliever and morphine substitute.