It’s been an amazing year for CBD and
medicinal cannabis. Legalisation in
more US states, Epidyolex in the UK
and a boom in new products has left
us wondering, what could be the next
all-natural alternative?
While psychedelics are not new, recent
studies have suggested they could be
worth a trip (sorry!) if you suffer from
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD),
anxiety or depression. A landmark
study by the New York University
Grossman School of Medicine that
started in 2016 has shown remarkable
results in treating anxiety and
depression in cancer patients. The
results showed “immediate, substantial,
and sustained improvements
in anxiety and depression,” with
an 80% reduction in symptoms
when combined with therapy. The
researchers reported an improved
attitude towards death with the same
participants recording overwhelmingly
positive life changes four years later.
New York University said: “Participants
overwhelmingly (71-100%) attributed
positive life changes to the psilocybin-
assisted therapy experience and
rated it among the most personally
meaningful and spiritually signifi cant
experiences of their lives.”
Anxiety and depression rates have
soared in the UK, with the NHS
reporting that 70.9 million treatment
items were given out in 2018 which is
double the amount on record for 2008.
Could mushrooms help reduce these
fi gures?
Not your average chestnut
Mushrooms have been considered a
medicine among indigenous tribes
for centuries, but it seems we are
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only just realising their potential.
Mushrooms became a Class A drug
in 2005 which means they carry a
seven-year sentence for possession.
Where permitted, they are usually
taken with food to disguise the bitter
taste or made into a tea. The potency
of the mushrooms is based on the
species, origin, growing conditions or
even the harvesting period.
Psychoactive mushrooms contain
psilocybin, a known hallucinogen
that works by activating serotonin
receptors often found in the
prefrontal cortex which affects mood,
perception and cognition.
The UK has several poisonous
varieties of mushrooms with rather
alarming names such as the death
cap, destroying angel and funeral bell.
Psilo… what?
Psilocybin has shown positive results
for addiction recovery – just as the US
is currently in the grip of an opioid
crisis. Johns Hopkins University
published results of a survey on 343
individuals who suffered from mild to
severe forms of Alcohol Use Disorder
(AUD). Participants who were
classifi ed as severe drank more than
25 drinks per week for the past seven
years. They felt unable to cut down
and their lives were impacted as a
result of their drinking. While some
participants in this trial took LSD, 36%
of those in the study took psilocybin.
A year after the study concluded, 83%
“Participants
attributed positive
life changes to the
psilocybin-assisted
therapy experience
and rated it among
the most personally
meaningful
experiences of their
lives.”
no longer met the AUD criteria and
had reduced their intake to just four
drinks a week.
Results like this are why the Food and
Drug Administration (FDA) awarded
psilocybin break through status to
a drug being tested by COMPASS, a
mental health care company in the US
in 2018.
George Goldsmith, Executive Chairman
of COMPASS Pathways said:
“We are excited to be taking this
work forward with our clinical trial
on psilocybin therapy for treatment-
resistant depression. The FDA will be
working closely with us to expedite the
development process and increase the
chances of getting this treatment to