David Nutt

From WikiMD's Wellness Encyclopedia

David Nutt is a British neuropsychopharmacologist specializing in the research of drugs that affect the brain and conditions such as addiction, anxiety, and sleep. He was a former government advisor and was dismissed from his position in 2009 after making comments about the relative harms of drugs. He is currently the Edmond J. Safra Professor of Neuropsychopharmacology and director of the Neuropsychopharmacology Unit in the Division of Brain Sciences at Imperial College London.

Early life and education[edit | edit source]

David Nutt was born in 1951 in England. He completed his secondary education at Bristol Grammar School and then went on to study medicine at Downing College, Cambridge. After completing his degree, he continued his training at Guy's Hospital in London.

Career[edit | edit source]

Nutt's career has been marked by his research into psychotropic drugs and their impact on the human brain. He has published over 400 original research papers, a similar number of reviews and book chapters, eight government reports on drugs and 27 books.

In 2009, Nutt was dismissed from his position as a government advisor after he claimed in a paper that alcohol and tobacco were more harmful than many illegal drugs, including LSD, ecstasy and cannabis. His comments caused controversy and led to his dismissal from his position.

Current work[edit | edit source]

Currently, Nutt is the Edmond J. Safra Professor of Neuropsychopharmacology and director of the Neuropsychopharmacology Unit in the Division of Brain Sciences at Imperial College London. He is also the president of the European Brain Council and founding chair of DrugScience, formerly known as the Independent Scientific Committee on Drugs.

Awards and recognition[edit | edit source]

Throughout his career, Nutt has received numerous awards and recognition for his work. These include the British Association for Psychopharmacology's Lifetime Achievement Award and the John Maddox Prize for Standing up for Science.

See also[edit | edit source]

References[edit | edit source]


External links[edit | edit source]

David Nutt Resources

Contributors: Prab R. Tumpati, MD