Pharmacists or people who know about meds what is this?????!

Pharmacists or people who know about meds what is this?????

belladonna alkaloids? what is it??
isn't belladonna poisonous?
why would that stuff be in a medicine

1 month ago
yeah. that says its poison.
why is that specific thing in medicine

1 month ago
oops- sorry didn't see there were more answers

You might be interested in where the name "bella donna" came from. It is Italian for "beautiful woman." When an extract from the deadly nightshade was dropped into the eyes of young ladies, it made their pupils (black centers of the eyes) much larger. This was considered beautiful, but it came at the price of making the eyes excessively light-sensitive, at least until the effect wore off.

This highlights the fact that belladonna alkaloids are "anti-cholinergic" and oppose the action of a natural chemical transmitter used by the body, called acetylcholine. In the case of the pupils, the usual action of acetylcholine is to make the pupils smaller. Thus, when belladonna is present, this action is opposed and the pupils remain larger.

Belladonna or drugs with similar actions, such as atropine, can be used therapeutically (in small amounts) for certain purposes, such as to calm an overactive digestive system.