Is psilocybin destined to become the standard treatment for depression? Well, if you read “shroom” correctly, things look pretty promising. The latest evidence comes from a phase 2 clinical trial investigating the use of psilocybin to treat patients with major depressive disorder. The study participant who received her only dose of psilocybin had significantly less severe symptoms than the participant who received a placebo for 43 days from the start of the study. As explained in the new publication of JAMA.
Now, just because psilocybin is a hallucinogen in magic mushrooms doesn’t mean it simply works by magic. Previous scientific studies suggest that psilocybin may have real effects on the brain by binding to and activating serotonin 2A (5-HT2A) receptors in the brain. Serotonin is a very important naturally occurring neurotransmitter…that’s if you think mood, thoughts, memory and whether or not you vomit matter. Yes, the next time you vomit at the thought of a past lover, you can at least somewhat appreciate your serotonin levels. As previously explained, by activating such serotonin receptors, psilocybin may actually help rewire the brain’s wiring, increasing interconnectivity and flexibility. forbes. And a more connected and flexible brain may outperform a detached and rigid brain.
Previous studies have already suggested that psilocybin may be an effective treatment for depression. Effective words important here. However, these prior studies had relatively small numbers of participants and are therefore “recommended”. They also don’t really show how long the beneficial effects of psilocybin last. So, in short, more research is needed.
Join us in this latest clinical trial. The trial was conducted from December 2019 to June 2022 at 11 different US sites. For this trial, the research team recruited 104 participants who documented a diagnosis of moderate-to-severe major depressive disorder for at least 60 days. . All participants had an average age of 41.1, between the ages of 21 and 65, and half of the participants were female.
The research team then randomly assigned about half of the participants (51) to a single dose of 25 mg of psilocybin and the rest (53) to a single dose of placebo, niacin, 100 mg. This was a double-blind study, and neither the investigator nor the participants knew who was receiving what during the study. The capsules were even made to look identical so that one could not distinguish which was psilocybin and which was niacin until the test was completed. This wasn’t done just to confuse everyone. Doing so was important to ensure that people were not reporting changes in symptoms simply because they believed psilocybin was working.
In addition to receiving these treatments, participants also received psychological support. After all, no one expects a pill, whether it’s a drug-manufactured antidepressant or a drug like psilocybin, to “magically” eliminate the symptoms of depression. Treatment for depression should always include at least some form of counseling.
To track what happened to the symptoms of depression, researchers put MADRS into their hands, so to speak. They used the Montgomery-Asberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS) to measure the severity of participants’ depressive symptoms at various time points during the trial. For MADRS, this scale produces scores ranging from 0 to 60, with higher scores indicating more severe depression. They also used the Sheehan Disability Scale to measure the impact of depressive symptoms.
Here’s a summary of what the researchers found in testing this magic mushroom substance: Patients in the psilocybin-treated group experienced greater reductions in MADRS scores than patients in the placebo group on days 8 (mean 12 points greater) and 43 (mean 12.3 points greater). The psilocybin-treated group also had an average score of 2.31 lower at baseline on the Sheehan Disability Scale by day 43.
One caveat is that people in the psilocybin treatment group appeared to experience more adverse events. A significantly higher proportion of people in the psilocybin group (82%) than those in the placebo group (44%) reported at least one treatment-related adverse event. However, most of these were considered mild to moderate adverse events. By day 9, 4 of the 50 participants receiving psilocybin reported serious adverse events. One experienced migraines, another had headaches, a third experienced hallucinations, and a fourth suffered from panic attacks and paranoia. By comparison, no one reported serious adverse events in the niacin placebo group.
Consider all of this a growing body of evidence that substances found in magic mushrooms could potentially be effective treatments for depression. Of course, the journey to an approved treatment doesn’t end there. Further studies will be needed to confirm the safety and efficacy of psilocybin over a longer period of time and across a broader population. However, the results so far have been promising. There is certainly room for more treatments for depression, as existing treatments have many potential drawbacks, including various side effects. So this is a real opportunity to break the mold, so to speak, when it comes to treating depression.
