Quinine is a medication used to treat malaria and babesiosis.
From 1969, to 1992, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) received 157 reports of health problems related to quinine use, including 23 which had resulted in death. In 1994, the FDA banned the marketing of over-the-counter quinine as a treatment for nocturnal leg cramps. Quinine is approved for treatment of malaria. Because malaria is life-threatening, the risks associated with quinine use are considered acceptable when used to treat that affliction.
Quinine is sometimes detected as a cutting agent in street drugs such as cocaine and heroin.
June 2022 cfsre Report – Quinine & Quinidine: Toxic Adulterants Found in Illicit Street Drugs