The recent heightened public enthusiasm for the potential therapeutic benefits of psychedelics, especially for treatment-resistant mental health conditions, has resulted in a renewed interest in the underlying science that governs their properties and pharmacology.The science of psychedelics is an intriguing, multi-disciplinary field and encompasses many known psychedelic substances, including...
Advances in Mental HealthJuly 13, 2023Jorge Valdiviezo‐oña, Lizbeth Toscano-Molina, Juan Fernando Chávez et al.4 citations
Objective To map the studies reporting the use of psychedelics in clinical and non-clinical settings by people reporting an eating disorder (ED) and their outcomes.Method To be included, peer-reviewed articles had to be written in English or Spanish and had to address the usage of psychedelics by people reporting an ED. Searches were conducted on PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science. Data on key...
This chapter focuses on drugs in spiritual and religions contexts, considering their role in altered states of consciousness, divination and healing. The first part of the chapter presents the sub-discipline of ethnobotany and its contribution to anthropological ideas about hallucinogenic plant substances and their wider connection of drugs to shamanism and the spirit world. It also discusses...
Background: The classical psychedelics, psilocybin, peyote, ayahuasca/ N,N-dimethyltryptamine, and lysergic acid diethylamide are considered promising new treatments for psychiatric illnesses, such as depression, anxiety, addiction, and obsessive-compulsive disorders. However, their profound and characteristic subjective effects raise concern for distinctive biases in randomized clinical...
Abstract In the 1920s, physicians discovered the potential for ‘speech induction’ offered by psychoactive substances. The German Nazis were the first to conduct experiments on the use of ‘truth drugs’ for interrogation purposes. Later, after some American prisoners of war ‘confessed’ to the use of biological weapons in the Korean war, the United States (US) Army suspected that they had been...
Abstract The American chemist Alexander T. Shulgin played a significant role in the ‘rediscovery’ of MDMA in the 1970s. In 1960, an experience with mescaline inspired Shulgin to undertake research with psychoactive drugs. He subsequently synthesized psychoactive chemicals and tested them on himself and a group of others. In the early 1960s, Shulgin studied the chemistry of nutmeg: chemical...
This article presents an analytical reading of the extraordinarily rich cultural production around drugs by the 20th-century French poet, writer, critic, and visual artist Michaux (1899–1984). Over about a decade, from the mid-1950's, the otherwise habitually sober Michaux wrote five books, included within which were dozens of drawings, and made one half-hour film, charting his adventures as an...
The gut-brain axis (GBA) refers to the sophisticated bidirectional communication system connecting the digestive system with the central nervous system. This interaction is enabled by a series of intricate signaling processes, encompassing various neuro-immune and hormonal pathways. The association between the gut microbiome and mental health has garnered immense scientific and public interest,...
DiagnosticsMarch 10, 2023Liliana Dragomir, Virginia Marina, Mihaela Anghele et al.
MDMA (3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine; commonly referred to as “Molly” or “ecstasy”) is a synthetic compound, structurally and pharmacologically similar to both amphetamines and mescaline. MDMA differs somewhat from traditional amphetamines in that it is not structurally similar to serotonin. Cocaine is rare and cannabis is consumed less frequently than in Western Europe. Heroin is the drug...
Abstract Impairment in social functioning is a common source of morbidity across many mental health disorders, yet there is a dearth of effective and easily implemented interventions to support social functioning. MDMA/ecstasy and classic psychedelics (psilocybin, LSD, peyote, mescaline) represent two potential treatments for impairments in social functioning, as evidence suggests these...