Elon Musk defends ketamine use, says it is ‘beneficial’ for investors

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Elon Musk has in an interview posted on March 18 admitted to using the prescription ketamine and said that this is "beneficial for investors", Reuters reported. Talking to former CNN anchor Don Lemon, the Tesla CEO said ketamine helps him manage a "negative chemical state" similar to depression. Ketamine is used to treat pain and depression and in heavy doses is used as a sedative.

"From the standpoint of Wall Street, what matters is execution. For investors, if there's something I'm taking, I should keep taking it," Musk said. The interview, conducted earlier this month, covered various topics including politics, and content moderation on X and Tesla.

manages multiple ventures, including the electric vehicle maker Tesla, SpaceX, a rocket company, and X, a social media platform. During the interview, Musk also addressed concerns about his ketamine prescription potentially affecting government contracts and Wall Street perception. A Wall Street Journal investigation published in January raised concerns about Musk's reported use of drugs such as LSD, cocaine, ecstasy, and psychedelic mushrooms.

This raised alarms among executives and board members, particularly regarding potential violations of federal policies that could impact SpaceX's government contracts. The report highlighted a Tesla director's frustration with Musk's behaviour, leading to her decision not to seek re-election to the board in 2019. In response to the Journal report, Musk stated that he consented to three years of random drug testing at NASA's request, with no trace quantities found of any drugs or alcohol.