Psychedelic Mushrooms—The New Antidepressant?
“I have struggled with depression on and off for several years and have tried many different antidepressants without much relief. I heard that Oregon recently legalized psychedelic mushrooms for medical use...do you happen to know anything about this new form of treatment? It certainly sounds a bit daunting so I’m curious to know if there is any research behind it. ”
Dear Curious But Skeptical,
I completely relate to feeling skeptical about new developments like this in the medical field, especially if there is not yet extensive and compelling research to back the claims. However, on this specific topic there does seem to be some research making headway. In fact, the New England Journal of Medicine—considered by many to be a reliable marker of where mainstream medicine is currently at—has recently published findings from a 6-week randomized controlled trial comparing psilocybin therapy (psychedelic mushrooms) with traditional antidepressants.
Here are some interesting results from the study:
Significantly larger reductions in anhedonia, suicidality, and standard psychological scores for depression among the psilocybin group compared to the traditional antidepressant group
70% of subjects in the psilocybin group responded to treatment, while only 48% of subjects in the traditional antidepressant group did
57% of subjects in the psilocybin group experienced remission, while only 28% in the traditional antidepressant group did
Fewer side effects in the psilocybin group compared to the traditional antidepressant group
Despite these promising findings, it is still quite early in the research process. More studies are needed before there can be any large-scale implementations in patient care.