Pharmacopeia, << `fahr` muh kuh PEE uh, >> also spelled pharmacopoeia, is a book containing standards for drugs and drug products. It includes a statement of their properties, the doses in which they may be safely taken, and the standards that determine their strength and purity. The volume is compiled usually under the highest professional, sometimes governmental, authority. Today, almost all nations recognize the need for pharmacopeias. Pharmacopeias are continually revised and updated.
The first pharmacopeia was the Nuremberg Pharmacopoeia. It was published in Germany in 1542. The first pharmacopeia published in the United States appeared in 1778. It was designed for use in the army. The earliest national pharmacopeia dates from 1820. In 1906, under the Federal Food and Drugs Act, The Pharmacopoeia of the United States of America was made a legal standard. Now called The United States Pharmacopeia–The National Formulary, it is revised continuously. Laws of Congress enforce its requirements.
