A study of Huichol Indians in northern Mexico, lifelong users of the hallucinogen peyote (a mescaline-containing cactus), found no increase in chromosomal aberrations in their peripheral-blood lymphocytes. The results are clear-cut and negative, providing reassurance amid earlier controversy over whether psychoactive agents like LSD and marijuana might induce chromosomal damage. The authors did not demonstrate any increase in chromosomal damage from peyote use.
An executive order supports the development and approval of psychedelic drugs, but their integration into clinical care raises ethical and evidence-based concerns that must be addressed.
Imagery rehearsal therapy (IRT) reduced chronic nightmares, improved sleep quality, and decreased PTSD symptom severity in women with PTSD, most of whom had experienced sexual assault. In a randomized trial of 168 women in New Mexico, those receiving three IRT sessions showed large reductions in nightmare frequency and PTSD symptoms at 3- and 6-month follow-up, while wait-list controls showed only small, nonsignificant improvements. Posttraumatic stress symptoms decreased by at least one level of clinical severity in 65% of the treatment group, compared with symptoms worsening or not changing in 69% of controls. IRT appears to be a brief, well-tolerated treatment for chronic nightmares in PTSD.