Ten patients with anorexia were treated with psilocybin and reported a positive experience, and four experienced remission of their symptoms.
Psilocybin, the main psychoactive ingredient in magic mushrooms, could be a promising new treatment option for anorexia, early clinical tests have shown.
The findings, published Monday in the journal Nature Medicine, will need to be replicated in larger trials to confirm that psilocybin can effectively relieve anorexia's core symptoms, the study authors noted. However, with no currently approved medications for anorexia on the market, these initial results could signal hope for a new treatment option for this potentially deadly illness.
The hallucinogen psilocybin has already shown promise as a treatment for other mental health conditions, such as depression, alcohol use disorder and obsessive-compulsive disorder. It is believed to work by switching on receptors in the brain that normally react to the"feel-good" hormone serotonin — also called 5-HT2a— whose function can be reduced in patients with anorexia.
Following treatment, 90% of the group reported that they had a more positive outlook on life, with 80% rating the experience as one of their"top five most meaningful of life" and 70% feeling that their general quality of life improved. Although most participants reported these positive experiences, only four entered remission after three months, meaning their characteristic eating disorder symptoms, such as weight concerns, fell to baseline levels experienced by the general population.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
This AI-Generated Beer Commercial Is a Psychedelic NightmareAn AI-generated beer commercial is here, and frankly, it's the ghoulish fever dream of a beer commercial that we all deserve.
Read more »
Minneapolis backs off arrests for psychedelic plant useMinneapolis is backing away from enforcing laws that criminalize buying psychedelic plants or using them in private
Read more »
Minneapolis backs off arrests for psychedelic plant useMinneapolis is backing away from enforcing laws that criminalize the purchase of psychedelic plants or using them in private.
Read more »