Rappler Talk: Dr. Carl Hart on drug war and public health

MANILA, Philippines – Rappler talks to Dr. Carl Hart, chairperson of Columbia University’s psychology department, about the link between public health and the war on drugs.

An expert on the effect of illegal drugs on humans, Hart debunked President Rodrigo Duterte’s claims that the repeated use of shabu (methamphetamine) shrinks a user’s brain over time.

“The data simply isn’t there,” Hart said, whose area of research includes “behavioral and neuropharmacological effects of psychoactive drugs in humans.” Hart, a renowned neuroscientist and drug abuse expert, chairs Columbia University’s psychology department.

Hart’s discussion was part of a talk on “a public health approach to the war on drugs” in a two-day drug policy forum conference sponsored by non-governmental organizations, held at the University of the Philippines in Diliman, Quezon City.

While Hart did not mention Duterte in his talk, the drug expert noted that this “myth” seemed to be prevalent in the Philippines.

Watch Rappler’s interview with Hart. – Rappler.com