Markets of Pain

Markets of Pain explores the largely untold history of licit opium, tracing its journey from traditional cultivation to its role in modern medicine. The book highlights how different nations, including the Ottoman Empire, Turkey, and postcolonial India, have managed and depended on opium as a strategic resource. It reveals how this historically significant crop evolved into a key element of globalization, geopolitics, and public health, offering insights into its influence on the modern pharmaceutical industry and the ongoing opioid crisis.