Feeling down? Consider a TRIP to the doctor’s.
This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science.
Depression affects more than THREE HUNDRED MILLION people worldwide. Unfortunately, not all medications work for everyone. Does nature have an answer?
Robin von Rotz and team at the University of Zurich in Switzerland investigated.
They tested if psilocybin – the psychedelic compound in certain mushrooms – could treat depression in HUMANS. This far-out idea was based on promising studies of rodents.
Researchers gave roughly fifty participants WITH depression a SINGLE dose of psilocybin… or a placebo. Age and sex were equal between groups. The team surveyed their depression severity before treatment and two weeks later. And? Individuals given psilocybin felt much less depressed! Only minimal side effects were seen.
More studies are needed before psilocybin becomes legalized. But, the researchers believe it could be a quick, effective depression treatment!
And – pairs well with those old Grateful Dead albums! Just kidding. Until further research, we still advise, Just Say No.
Reference:
von Rotz, R., Schindowski, E. M., Jungwirth, J., Schuldt, A., Rieser, N. M., Zahoranszky, K., Seifritz, E., Nowak, A., Nowak, P., Jäncke, L., Preller, K. H., & Vollenweider, F. X. (2022). Single-dose psilocybin-assisted therapy in major depressive disorder: A placebo-controlled, double-blind, randomised clinical trial. EClinicalMedicine, 56, 101809. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eclinm.2022.101809