Magic mushrooms to tackle depression
The psychedelic power of magic mushrooms could be exploited to fight depression. In two pioneering studies its active ingredient psilocybin has been found to induce a mental state that neurologists think is suitable ground for effective therapy.
F-MRI scans of the volunteers on the mushroom “trip” revealed that parts of the brain associated with depression were under-active and the drug seemed to allow more access to positive memories than usual. Also, the vividness of their memory under the drug had a positive correlation to their mental well-being two weeks later.
Researchers at three British universities carried out the two studies that bring the entire picture together. The first of the studies published in the journal PNAS, reports that psilocybin reduces the overall activity of the brain — especially in hub areas of medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) and posterior cingulate cortex (PCC), which are densely connected to other parts — rather than increasing neural activity as previously thought. Depress-ion has been strongly associated with hyperactivity in the mPFC; most of the existing treatments focus on easing this overuse. If the new study is to be believed, the calming impact of psilocybin on mPFC might be its biggest therapeutic value against depression.
The PCC controls sense of self-consciousness, ego and personality issues. Easing the activity of this region can clearly help get rid of anxiousness. Along with these effects, psilocybin also reduces blood flow in the area of the brain that is inflamed during cluster headaches.
Psychology author Maia Szalavitz wrote in Time: “When functioning normally, these connective ‘hubs’ appear to help constrain the way we see, hear and experience the world, grounding us in reality. They are also the key nodes of a brain network linked to self-consciousness and depression.”
The second study to be published in British Journal of Psychiatry suggests that psilocybin could be useful as an “adjunct to psychotherapy” as the volunteers injected with it reported more vivid experiences when asked to recollect positive personal memories. The brain scans show increased activity on areas that process vision and other senses.
However, both these studies were performed on healthy willing adults having previous experience with psychedelic drugs. This and the size of both studies, recruiting about 30 volunteers, limit the finding’s direct impact on influencing therapeutic procedures.
The authors have also cautioned against using mushrooms as a self-medicating agent. The lead author Robin Carhart-Harris said the experience was a positive one for the volunteers, but was not sure of the effect on depressed minds as they were more sensitive to negative responses than to psychedelic drugs.
Comments
Magic mushrooms have for many
Lisa
27 Jan 2012 - 06:20
Magic mushrooms have for many years been openly sold in Dutch "smart shops" (the recent ban pushed through by the ruling Christian Democrats only affected certain types, psilocybin "truffles" are still available, and these are considered among the most potent). Dutch health authorities have repeatedly recommended that magic mushrooms should remain legal because they do not pose a danger to public health.
See the 2011 report "Harm potential of magic mushroom use: A review" by Jan van Amsterdam, Antoon Opperhuizen, Wim van den Brink (doi: 10.1016/j.yrtph.2011.01.006)
http://www.scribd.com/doc/47478433/Harm-potential-of-magic-mushroom-use-...
Millions of people use magic mushrooms each year, and there are very few reports of potential problems. Drug policy should be based on evidence, not anecdotes or ideological hysteria.
The ban on magic mushrooms and other psychedelics is one of the clearest examples of religious persecution in modern Western society.
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