Magic mushrooms may be the world’s most powerful antidepressant, says a new British medical study

Over 17 million Americans struggle with depression.

Depression significantly affects quality of life and relationships. Even the most mundane tasks can be difficult, like getting out of bed. There are different types of treatments for depression, including different types of therapy and antidepressants, which can often be used together, especially in severe cases. Despite the medical breakthroughs in depression, there are still millions of people who are resistant to treatment, yet no new drugs for depression have been developed in over 30 years, since Prozac pioneered SSRI drugs.

And the answer to the cure may be right under our feet: mushrooms

A study by Imperial College London’s Center for Psychedelic Research found that psilocybin mushrooms were effective in helping to open up the brains of participants suffering from depression, even weeks after consumption. Almost 60 subjects took part in the studies, which yielded positive results. For the methodology, the researchers evaluated fMRI scans of people from the studies: in one study, all received psilocybin, while in another randomized control study for general depression, they evaluated the effectiveness of psilocybin over escitalopram, a commonly used SSRI drug to treat Depressions.

Participants were then asked to report the effects by answering a clinical questionnaire. They were also asked to undergo talk therapy with a psychologist and had brain scans before and after taking magic mushrooms. Researchers found that participants who responded positively to psilocybin therapy continued to show improved brain connectivity three weeks after treatment.

The brain of someone with depression is restricted, the researchers say. But using psilocybin has proven effective in helping the brain break out of these patterns and improve communication by separating the brain regions responsible for this function. In addition, this area has also been the site where traditional therapy has failed for these patients. “The effect seen with psilocybin is consistent across two studies and relates to improvement in people and has not been seen with a traditional antidepressant,” said Professor Robin Carhart-Harris, senior author of the study. “In previous studies we’d seen a similar effect in the brain when people were scanned while taking a psychedelic, but here we’re seeing it weeks after treatment for depression, suggesting a ‘carry over’ of the acute drug effect,” he adds .

The researchers are still working on follow-up data, although the initial development of brain activity after one day of treatment was already a good indicator of whether or not a patient would still show improvements after 6 months. “We don’t yet know how long the changes in brain activity seen with psilocybin therapy last, and we need to do more research to understand this. We know that some people relapse, and after a while their brains may revert to the rigid patterns of activity that we see in depression,” added Professor Carhart-Harris.

However, the study’s authors warn that people suffering from depression should not attempt to self-medicate. The study was conducted with various safety mechanisms, and people who self-medicate may not have the same outcome without them.

“These results are important because for the first time we are finding that psilocybin works differently than traditional antidepressants – it makes the brain more flexible and fluid and less locked into the negative thought patterns associated with depression. This supports our initial predictions and confirms that psilocybin could be a real alternative approach to treating depression,” adds Professor David Nutt, Director of the Imperial Center for Psychedelic Research.

“An exciting implication of our findings is that we have uncovered a fundamental mechanism by which psychedelic therapy works not only for depression, but also for other mental illnesses such as anorexia or addiction. We now have to test whether this is the case, and if so, then we have found something important,” adds Professor Carhart-Harris.

Magic Mushrooms: Revolutionary breakthrough in medicine

Millions of dollars are being poured into psilocybin research for depression and other mental illnesses worldwide. This is exciting, to say the least, for both scientists and patients suffering from depression.

There are so many reasons this inspires tremendous hope for a treatment, primarily because psilocybin doesn’t cripple patients with the side effects of antidepressants. It is also much more affordable compared to antidepressants, and patients can enjoy significant, long-lasting relief with just small amounts. In fact, smaller amounts seem to work even better than larger amounts. Further studies support the effectiveness behind ingesting as little as 0.1-0.3 grams of shrooms, a practice done 3-5 times per week, which results in significant improvements in mental health.

In another recent study, 953 patients participated in a 30-day psilocybin microdosing study conducted by Microdose.me and directed by Dr. Zach Walsh and Joseph Rootman of the University of British Columbia Okanagan. Those who took small amounts of psilocybin showed improvements in mental health and mood over a month compared to those who didn’t. “This is the largest longitudinal study of its kind on psilocybin microdosing to date and one of the few studies to include a control group,” said Dr. Walsh. “Our findings on improved mood and reduced symptoms of depression, anxiety and stress add to the growing discussion about the therapeutic potential of microdosing,” he says.

“Despite the promising nature of these results, there is a need for further research to pinpoint the nature of the relationship between microdosing, mood and mental health, and the extent to which these effects are directly attributable to psilocybin, rather than participants’ expectations about the substance ” says Dr. Walsh.

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