Is Xanax a Barbiturate?

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Klara Hatinova

Klara Hatinova

Klara is postgraduate researcher in experimental psychology at the
University of Oxford.

Is Xanax a Barbiturate?

No, Xanax, the pharmacological drug called alprazolam, is not a barbiturate.

Xanax is a type of benzodiazepine, which induces sedation and has a calming effect on the nervous system by binding to a section of the GABA receptor on the secondary, postsynaptic, neuron [1].

Barbiturates, on the other hand, are a class of drugs that induce sedation by hyperpolarising the secondary neuron, making it less likely to respond to an incoming stimulus [2].

Thus although both barbiturates and benzodiazepines have a calming/sedative effect on the body, the way they achieve this and their chemical origin is different.

Barbiturates and Benzodiazepines are also used for distinct clinical indications [3].

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Klara Hatinova

Klara Hatinova

Klara is a postgraduate researcher in experimental psychology at the University of Oxford. She has worked across a spectrum of hot topics in neuroscience, including her current project measuring reinforcement learning strategies in Parkinson’s disease. Previously, she studied the efficacy of psilocybin as a therapy for critical mental health conditions and examined molecular circadian rhythms of migraine disorders. She completed her undergraduate degree in Neuroscience at the University of Glasgow and participated in a year abroad at the University of California, where she worked on a clinical trial for spinal cord injury.