Gabriel Georges Nahas (March 4, 1920 – June 28, 2012) was an

anesthesiologist Anesthesiology, anaesthesiology, or anaesthesia is the medical specialty concerned with the total perioperative care of patients before, during and after surgery. It encompasses anesthesia, intensive care medicine, critical emergency medicine, ...

known for his advocacy against marijuana use and for the illegality of drugs. He worked at Walter Reed Medical Center

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

and later

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then-Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin. In 1832, the ...

. His mother Gabrielle Wolff Nahas, was French, and his father Bishara Nahas (1887-1929), was a Lebanese agricultural engineer and merchant who emigrated to the United States and then gained recognition for his timely book on King Tut-ankh-amun. The Nahas family moved from Gabriel's birthplace of Alexandria, Egypt to southern France when he was a child. An active member of the

French Resistance The French Resistance (french: La Résistance) was a collection of organisations that fought the German occupation of France during World War II, Nazi occupation of France and the Collaborationism, collaborationist Vichy France, Vichy régim ...

, he was awarded the

Légion d'honneur The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon ...

Charles de Gaulle Charles André Joseph Marie de Gaulle (; ; (commonly abbreviated as CDG) 22 November 18909 November 1970) was a French army officer and statesman who led Free France against Nazi Germany in World War II and chaired the Provisional Government ...

, the croix de guerre with three palm leaves and a star, the Medal of Freedom from US President Harry S. Truman,

Ellis Island Medal of Honor The Ellis Island Medal of Honor is an American award founded by the Ellis Island Honors Society (EIHS) (formerly known as the National Ethnic Coalition of Organizations (NECO)), which is presented annually to American citizens, both native-born a ...

from US President Ronald Reagan, was a Fulbright scholar, member of the Order of the British Empire (OBE), officer of the order of Orange-NASSAU, Medal of Honor of the Statue of Liberty, and Ph.D. from the University of Minnesota where he was a Mayo Foundation Fellow. On June 3, 1988 Nahas received an

honorary doctorate An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or ''ad hon ...

from the Faculty of Medicine at

Uppsala University Uppsala University ( sv, Uppsala universitet) is a public university, public research university in Uppsala, Sweden. Founded in 1477, it is the List of universities in Sweden, oldest university in Sweden and the Nordic countries still in opera ...

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...

While at Walter Reed, his research on intra-operative acid base balance spurred a new protocol of patient management in the operating room. Nahas also argued against the use of

cocaine Cocaine (from , from , ultimately from Quechuan languages, Quechua: ''kúka'') is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant mainly recreational drug use, used recreationally for its euphoria, euphoric effects. It is primarily obtained from t ...

for experimental purposes in human subjects.Nahas, Gabriel
The experimental use of cocaine in human subjects

Bulletin on Narcotics The Bulletin on Narcotics is a publication of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. First published in 1981, the bulletin provides a great deal of insight into the legislative history of the drug control treaties of the 20th century, includi ...

, 1990. After moving to Columbia University, his work on addiction and the health risks of controlled substances brought him fame as well as considerable opprobrium. He died in Manhattan in 2012 of a respiratory infection.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nahas, Gabriel G. American anesthesiologists 1920 births Recipients of the Legion of Honour French Resistance members Cannabis researchers Cannabis in France Recipients of the Croix de Guerre 1939–1945 (France) 2012 deaths American biologists Egyptian emigrants to France French emigrants to the United States