SAN DIEGO — Magic mushrooms are showing promising results in treating anorexia. A first of its kind study at UC San Diego found psychedelics reduced the eating disorder's severity.
"There's no FDA approved treatment for anorexia. this tends to be a chronic and sometimes a deadly disorder," said Walter Kaye, the founder of the UC San Diego Eating Disorder Clinic.
Researchers had hope that Psilocybin, the active ingredient in magic mushrooms, might have the power to change the perception of a person with anorexia and open a door to recovery.
"The whole purpose is to be with those experiences to figure out if they can find new information or some transformative experience to breakthrough and help them heal," said Stephanie Knatz Peck, a clinical psychologist who is working with Kaye at UC San Diego.
Ten people participated in the pilot trial. They were given a high dose of magic mushrooms in a synthesized pill form. They went through therapy before, during and after their experience. Stephanie Knatz Peck described how one participant, who suffered from anorexia for nearly two decades responded.
"During the experience she talked about having a vision of her eating disorder coming out of her as a skeleton and dying in front of her. The very next day she reported that she no longer identified with having an eating disorder," she said.
These results have researchers wanting to learn more about psychedelics and anorexia. They're now recruiting for a larger phase two trial to compare placebo to an active dose. Participants are still needed and will be compensated for their time.
Eligibility requirements include being at least 18 years old, current diagnosis of anorexia, able to attend up to 14 in-person visits within a four to five month period.
Contact Jessie Kim at UC San Diego Health Eating Disorders Center for Treatment and Research at jbk005@health.ucsd.edu.
"I've been in this field a long time and we've had very few that have really changed the perceptions of people with anorexia it's very promising," Kaye said.
Organizers in California are gathering signatures for a ballot initiative that would decriminalize certain psychedelic substances, including Psilocybin mushrooms. It would allow doctors to prescribe the mushroom and allow people to grow it and to use it for recreational purposes.
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