Phospho-Energon, often just called Energon, was a 'miracle medicine' produced and distributed in Sweden

Sweden

Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....

. Through the sales of Phospho-Energon, the emerging Swedish pharmaceutical company A.B. Pharmacia

Pharmacia

Pharmacia was a pharmaceutical and biotechnological company in Sweden.-History:Pharmacia was founded in 1911 in Stockholm, Sweden by pharmacist Gustav Felix Grönfeldt at the Elgen Pharmacy. The company is named after the Greek word φαρμακεία, transliterated pharmakeia, which means 'sorcery'...

 (founded in 1911 out of the Elgen pharmacy in central Stockholm

Stockholm

Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...

) was able to establish itself on the market. With the incomes generated by the Energon sales Pharmacia was able to initiate pharmaceutical research and the production of other medicines, eventually becoming a major actor in the Swedish and international pharmaceutical sectors. The main ingredients of Energon were calf's brain, sugar and milk. Initially, the drug was sold as a powder to be mixed with liquid, but later pills were produced.

The product was said to have a 'safe and rapid effect against general debility, lack of appetite, nervous tension, exhaustion, and sleeping problems'. The drug was also used against blood deficiency and disturbances in the neural system. Moreover, the advertisement of Pharmacia claimed that consumption of Energon would relieve the user of fear of traffic, through the soothing of the nerves.

In early advertisements, Pharmacia claimed that the drug was endorsed by Swedish physicians. Moreover, the company stressed that its production was conducted under the scrutiny of professor Karl Albert Vesterberg.

The permit to sell the Phospho-Energon pills in Swedish pharmacies lapsed in 1936. The permits to sell four variations of the Phospho-Energon pills (with arsenic

Arsenic

Arsenic is a chemical element with the symbol As, atomic number 33 and relative atomic mass 74.92. Arsenic occurs in many minerals, usually in conjunction with sulfur and metals, and also as a pure elemental crystal. It was first documented by Albertus Magnus in 1250.Arsenic is a metalloid...

, iron

Iron

Iron is a chemical element with the symbol Fe and atomic number 26. It is a metal in the first transition series. It is the most common element forming the planet Earth as a whole, forming much of Earth's outer and inner core. It is the fourth most common element in the Earth's crust...

 and kola

Kola

Kola can refer to:*Kola nut, a genus of about 125 species of trees**Inca Kola, a cola soft drink made in Peru**Kola Real, a Peruvian soft drink**Kola Inglesa , a Peruvian soft drink...

extracts) in Swedish pharmacies lapsed in 1943.