October 4, 2011
Mushroom hallucinogen 'could treat depression
A SINGLE high dose of the hallucinogen psilocybin, the active ingredient in 'magic mushrooms', was enough to bring about a measureable personality change lasting at least a year in nearly 60 per cent of participants in a new study. Johns Hopkins researchers in the US claim lasting change was found in the part of the personality known as openness, which includes traits related to imagination, abstract ideas, feelings and general broad-mindedness. 'If anything, openness tends to decrease as people get older,' they wrote. The findings could be used to treat depression and anxiety.
