The chemical compound in psychedelic mushrooms was found to ease depression in hard-to-treat patients with a single dose, a latest study revealed.
The study, published Wednesday within the Recent England Journal of Medicine, joins a clamor of comparable findings in smaller studies. For context, there are greater than 180 studies involving psychedelics for medical use in depression, PTSD and other mental health conditions, available on the National Library of Medicine website.
The study found that the results of psilocybin, a chemical compound in psychedelic mushrooms, were modest and wore off over time. Yet, the outcomes were obtained with a single dose and showed improvement in treatment-resistant depression.
Researchers tested the hallucinogen in 233 adults within the U.S., Europe, and Canada. The pills were available in three doses: 25 mg, 10 mg, and 1 mg. Also present were two mental health specialists to guide the topics during a 6-to-8-hour session through hallucinatory experiences.
The outcomes found that depression symptoms decreased in all three groups, with essentially the most improvement observed within the highest-dose group initially. Nevertheless, the results waned over weeks.
After three weeks, 37% of high-dose recipients had substantial improvement. Moreover, 20% within the high-dose group still saw substantial improvement after three months.
The study, which is adding to the reignited interest within the possible medical uses of hallucinogens, was funded by Compass Pathways, a London-based firm developing psilocybin for industrial use.
“The findings are each intriguing and sobering,” Bertha Madras, a psychobiology professor from Harvard Medical School, who was not involved within the study, said, reported ABC News.
In keeping with Madras, this study was, to this point, essentially the most rigorous of its kind in determining the role of psilocybin in treating depression.
While some may find the study’s results encouraging, it is usually necessary to notice the negative effects of psychedelic mushrooms.
The drug caused symptoms like headaches and nausea, amongst other negative effects, in all three study groups. Serious negative effects like suicidal thoughts and self-injury, though unusual, were mostly restricted to participants with a history of suicidal thoughts.
The negative effects should not surprising, Dr. David Hellerstein, a co-author and Columbia University research psychiatrist, said, attributable to the intensity of the psychedelic experience from the drug.
“This will not be a house run, but it’s extremely encouraging,” Hellerstein said, emphasizing that the advance was observed after only one dose.
The compound in query, psilocybin continues to be classified as a controlled substance with no accepted medical use within the U.S. Nevertheless, several cities have already legalized magic mushrooms, with Oregon being the primary state to approve its medical use.