Drug Science, Policy and Law
2022
Plinio Ferreira, Adam Winstock, Anne Katrin Schlag et al.
9 citations
The recent surge in recreational (non-medical) use of nitrous oxide (N 2 O, also known as ‘laughing gas’) often by inhaling it from balloons, has attracted the attention of some politicians with calls to control its possession under the United Kingdom (UK) Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 (currently selling, but not possession, for recreational use is controlled under the Psychoactive Substances Act...
Drug Science, Policy and Law
2022
Rayyan Zafar, Dustin Sulak, Jaime Brambila et al.
3 citations
A 49-year-old woman was diagnosed with an ER + , PR-, HER2 + , BRCA- invasive ductal carcinoma which progressed metastatically to include bone, liver, and lymph node involvement. Standardised care included a 26-month treatment period with targeted chemotherapy and a ketogenic diet. The patient also began a course of cannabinoid-based therapy, consisting initially of a titrated high-dose...
Drug Science, Policy and Law
2022
Petter Grahl Johnstad
Researchers have associated cannabis use with risk for psychosis, cognitive impairment, and traffic accident. However, this review shows that the association between moderate cannabis use and psychosis is no stronger, and often considerably weaker, than the corresponding association for moderate tobacco use. The same holds for associations with cognitive impairment. For the risk of traffic...
Drug Science, Policy and Law
2022
Plinio Ferreira, David Nutt
In 2015 and 2016, during the debates that culminated in The Psychoactive Substances Act 2016, both houses of the UK parliament debated the pharmacology of nitric oxide and amyl nitrites, otherwise known as “poppers”. The original draft Psychoactive Substances Bill had recommended that poppers should be made illegal. However, after strong opposition inside the Conservative party, the ruling...
Drug Science, Policy and Law
2022
Pascoe Mj, S Radley, Simmons Htd
Adulteration poses additional unknown risks to the health of people who use illicit drugs. In this study, we sought to determine the extent and nature of adulteration of ‘MDMA’ in circulation at English summer music festivals in 2021, following Brexit, COVID-19 lockdowns and various regulatory changes overseas. At three festivals in 2019 and 2021, 1648 surrendered substances were analysed with...
Drug Science, Policy and Law
2020
Jacob S. Aday, Emily K. Bloesch, Christopher C. Davoli
59 citations
Public and scientific interest into psychedelic drugs has grown steadily over much of the last two decades, before an exponential increase in recent years. We contend that 2019, in particular, involved myriad notable changes in the science, industry, and deregulation of psychedelic drugs. However, it is becoming increasingly difficult for professionals to keep up-to-date on these advancements...
Drug Science, Policy and Law
2020
Natasha L. Mason, Patrick C. Dolder, Kim P. C. Kuypers
15 citations
Background It has been suggested that the outcome of the psychedelic experience is dependent on set and setting. While scientific research into the therapeutic potential of psychedelics is growing, it is clear that in clinical populations an optimal set and setting will not always be attainable. It was aimed to assess under which emotional and environmental circumstances psychedelic users use...
Drug Science, Policy and Law
2020
Jec Anthony, Adam Winstock, Ja Ferris et al.
9 citations
It is well documented that psychedelic drugs can have a profound effect on colour perception. After previous research involving psychedelic drug ingestion, several participants had written to the authors describing how symptoms of their colour blindness had improved. The Global Drugs Survey runs the world’s largest annual online drug survey. In the Global Drugs Survey 2017, participants...
Drug Science, Policy and Law
2019
Jacob S. Aday, Christopher C. Davoli, Emily K. Bloesch
30 citations
While interest in the study of psychedelic drugs has increased over much of the last decade, in this article, we argue that 2018 marked the true turning point for the field. Substantive advances in the scientific, public, and regulatory communities in 2018 significantly elevated the status and long-term outlook of psychedelic science, particularly in the United States. Advances in the...
Drug Science, Policy and Law
2019
Edward James, Thomas L Robertshaw, Michael J Pascoe et al.
3 citations
Background: Contemporary research indicates that the legal classifications of cannabis (Schedule 2, Class B), 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) (Schedule 1, Class A) and psilocybin (Schedule 1, Class A) in the United Kingdom are not entirely based on considerations of harm and therapeutic utility. The legal classifications of the substances discussed are typically determined by...
Drug Science, Policy and Law
2018
Torsten Passie
115 citations
3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA), also known as ecstasy, was first synthesized in 1912 but first reached widespread popularity as a legal alternative after the much sought-after recreational drug 3,4-methylenedioxy-amphetamine (MDA) was made illegal in 1970. Because of its benign, feeling-enhancing, and nonhallucinatory properties, MDMA was used by a few dozen psychotherapists in the...
Drug Science, Policy and Law
2018
Edward James, Thomas L Robertshaw, Andrew D. Westwell et al.
4 citations
Background Recreational drug use is a major cause of disease, injury, physical and mental impairment and death in developed countries such as the United Kingdom and the United States. Alcohol, tobacco, cannabis, 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) and psilocybe mushrooms are recreational drugs with capacity to cause harm. Cannabis, MDMA and psilocybin have reported therapeutic...
Drug Science, Policy and Law
2018
Timothy Amoroso
There is growing concern that the majority of modern research may be comprised of false findings, which is partly attributed to unacceptable flexibility in data analyses. Here this issue is considered in the literature suggesting that MDMA (3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine) may be associated with neurocognitive deficits. Research suggests that increased exposure to ecstasy is associated with...
Drug Science, Policy and Law
2017
Ido Hartogsohn
459 citations
Set and setting is a term which refers to the psychological, social, and cultural parameters which shape the response to psychedelic drugs. The concept is considered fundamental to psychedelic research and has also been used to describe nonpharmacological factors which shape the effects of other agents such as alcohol, heroin, amphetamines, or cocaine. This paper reviews the history and...
Drug Science, Policy and Law
2017
James W. B. Elsey
59 citations
The potential of psychedelic drugs in the treatment of mental health problems is increasingly being recognized. However, relatively little thrust has been given to the suggestion that individuals without any mental health problems may benefit from using psychedelic drugs, and that they may have a right to do so. This review considers contemporary research into the use of psychedelic drugs in...
Drug Science, Policy and Law
2017
Alan K. Davis, Harold Rosenberg
22 citations
Both recreational and problematic MDMA/ecstasy users could benefit from employing harm reduction interventions intended to preserve health and prevent negative consequences. To evaluate whether use of such interventions varied by country of residence and frequency of ecstasy use, we used web-based surveys to assess how often 104 lower-frequency and higher-frequency American ecstasy users and 80...
Drug Science, Policy and Law
March 24, 2015
Ben Sessa, Friederike Meckel Fischer
39 citations
Underground psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy has persisted in Europe despite the banning of the substances LSD and MDMA in the 1960s and 1980s, respectively. This article describes the work of a Zurich-based psychotherapist providing individual and group psycholytic psychotherapy, whose practice persisted for several years before she was arrested in 2009. The article provides commentary on...