Ritualistic Ayahuasca Users Tend to Have Positive Health and Psychosocial Well-being

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“New research provides evidence that the ritualistic use of the psychedelic drug ayahuasca is not a significant public health concern — and could in fact have potential benefits. The study has been published in the Journal of Psychoactive Drugs.

“Ayahuasca is a decoction originally from the Amazon rainforest that has been spread throughout the world. At ICEERS, we are interested in researching the eventual risks and benefits of its use,” said study author Jose Carlos Bouso, the scientific director of the International Center for Ethnobotanical Education, Research, and Services in Spain.

“We studied in the past its neuropsychiatric effects on long-term ayahuasca users and did not find any disturbances. Now we are interested in studying the effects of ayahuasca from a public health perspective.”

The researchers surveyed 380 ritualistic ayahuasca users in Spain regarding their self-perceived health, body mass index, presence of chronic disease, sleep quality, and several other factors. Most of the participants had taken ayahuasca between one and 10 times in their lifetime. But a substantial percentage of participants (29.7%) reported taking ayahuasca more than 100 times…”