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The folks who head to Vortex and Alien Safari over the summer aren’t exactly using psilocybin – the active ingredient in psychedelic or so-called ‘magic mushrooms’ – in a very scientific manner.

So be it. More power to you.

Proper research on the use of psilocybin to help people suffering from depression has been ongoing for years (including in South Africa), with impressive results from decades-long studies coming out of the US.

The latest results from a study at London’s Centre for Psychedelic Research at Imperial College, which have been published in the journal Nature Medicine, are yet another example of how psilocybin can have massively beneficial uses.

This via Gizmodo:

The study found that people undergoing psilocybin-assisted therapy experienced noticeable changes in brain patterns associated with depression, including when compared to a control group. People also reported a reduction in their depression symptoms alongside these brain changes…

There are regions of the brain that appear to be overly connected and rigid in people who have depression, including those associated with cognition and attention. In this current study, the researchers found, people on psilocybin experienced a reduction in brain connectivity along those same regions, while those on the SSRI [the placebo] did not.

The subjects also seemed to show an increase in connectivity between brain areas that aren’t as well-connected as they are in people who aren’t depressed.

As a result of these changes, say the authors, patients’ brains became better organised and they felt more relief from their depression.

The changes also lasted three works or more beyond the final dose given as part of the study.

Although researchers admit that further studies need to be carried out in this area, the data produced does lend weight to the longstanding idea that psychedelics like psilocybin are a viable alternative to more traditional ways of treating depression.

Professor David Nutt, head of the Imperial Centre for Psychedelic Research, spoke with Sky News:

“These findings are important because for the first time we find that psilocybin works differently from conventional antidepressants – making the brain more flexible and fluid, and less entrenched in the negative thinking patterns associated with depression.”

The study was carried out on around 60 people receiving treatment for depression at Imperial College.

Feel free to do your own research at home. We won’t stop you.

[sources:gizmodo&sky]