system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
ELI5: What is the actual use for rohypnol and why/how did it become the common 'date-rape' drug?
gpt
Rohypnol, pharmaceutical name flunitrazepam, belongs to the benzodiazepine family of drugs. You may be more familiar with two others in the family: xanax or ativan.

Its intended use is as a sleep aid, although it is sometimes used as an anti-convulsant or muscle relaxant.

It became "the date rape drug" because simply, its perfect for that.

It heavily sedate users, relaxes muscles making it harder to move, and can cause anterograde amnesia.  That is, it temporarily restricts the ability to create new memories,  which is useful to the type of person who would use it on a victim.