Pharmacological interventions to improve performance as a social challenge. Summary

For some years now, the use of pharmacological substances as a strategy for mental performance enhancement in work and everyday environments has been discussed under the term "enhancement". The TAB report "Pharmacological interventions for performance enhancement as a societal challenge" presents in detail the state of the possibilities to influence human performance pharmacologically and undertakes a classification of the corresponding substances in terms of drug, food and health law. It is shown that the existing medical ethical standards and approval procedures for medicinal products currently represent a considerable barrier to the development of non-therapeutic enhancement agents. Despite the lack of evidence of efficacy and the considerable potential for side effects, it can nevertheless be assumed that there is relevant substance use in the population, the causes and conditions of which appear to be the real social challenge. The analysis of the bioethical and socio-scientific debate on the topic and, in particular, the evaluation of findings from research into doping practices in competitive and popular sport provide indications of the possible dynamics of enhancement in the context of a "performance-enhancing society".