Study Shows Benefits And Risks Of Psilocybin Use [STUDY]

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A recent survey study on almost 2,000 people checked the risks, benefits, negative and positive experience associated with taking psilocybin mushrooms also known as psychedelic mushrooms or magic mushrooms.

"Considering both the negative effects and the positive outcomes that respondents sometimes reported, the survey results confirm our view that neither users nor researchers can be cavalier about the risks associated with psilocybin," says Roland Griffiths, Ph.D., a psychopharmacologist and professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences and neurosciences at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.

Psychedelic mushrooms are mushrooms that contain psychedelic compound used mainly for as entheogen and recreational drug. Its effects include euphoria, altered thinking processes, closed and open-eye visions, synesthesia and an altered sense of time and spiritual experiences.

The use of Psilocybin and other hallucinogens became popular in the United States in the 60s due to propositions suggesting that users would experience profound psychological insights and benefits.

However, these types of drugs were banned for supposed safety reasons in the 70s, without much scientific evidence about it risks or benefits. In recent years, Griffiths and his colleagues have conducted some studies that confirm some of those benefits. This survey study was designed to shed light on the impact of so-called "bad trips," he said.

The researchers used advertisements on social media platforms and email invitations to recruit person who reported a difficult or challenging experience while taking the magic mushrooms, according to Eurek Alert.

The survey included three questionnaires: the Hallucinogen Rating Scale, parts of the 5D-Altered States of Consciousness Questionnaire the Mystical Experience Questionnaire, developed by Griffiths and colleagues in 2006. The survey took about an hour to complete

The participants were requested to focus only on their worst bad trip experience and report about the dose of psilocybin they took, the environment in which the experience occurred, how long it lasted, strategies available and used to stop the negative experience and any unwanted consequences.

Out of 1,993 participants that completed the completed surveys, 78 percent were men, 89 percent were white, 51 percent had college or graduate degrees, 66 percent were from the United States and 93 percent reported that they used psilocybin more than twice.

The average age of the participants were 30 years old at the time of the survey and 23 years old at the time of their experiences.

Based on the survey data which assessed the participant's bad trip experience, 10.7 percent of the participants said they put themselves or others at risk for physical harm, 2.6 percent acted aggressively or violently and 2.7 percent sought medical help.

Five of the participants who reported pre-existing anxiety, depression or suicidal thoughts, attempted suicide during their worst bad trip, thus, indicative of requiring a supportive and safe environment during use, according to the authors.

Participants in all of Griffiths' clinical researches were provided a safe and comfortable space with trained experts to offer support.

However, six people reported that their suicidal thoughts disappeared after their experience. A third reported that the experience was among their top five most meaningful, while others say it was among the top five most spiritually significant experiences of their lives.

Sixty-two percent of participants listed it among the top 10 most difficult moments in their life, 39 percent said it in among their top five most difficult experiences and 11 percent listed it as their single most difficult experience.

However, the researcher cautioned that their survey results do not apply to all psilocybin mushroom use, as the questionnaire was not designed to assess good trip experiences. It was not also designed to determine how often bad trips occur, according to Science Daily.

The researchers noted that this type of survey studies rely on self-reporting that cannot be objectively substantiated, and so rigorous scientific studies are required for the better understanding of the risks and potential benefits of using hallucinogenic drugs.

The study was funded by grants from the National Institute on Drug Abuse, the Council on Spiritual Practices and the Heffter Research Institute. The researchers published their findings in the December 1, print issue of the Journal of Psychopharmacology.