Aidan Rowell
Dr. Overaa
AWR 201-29
20 March 2023
Should Psilocybin Treatment Evolve
I ventured on a scientific deep dive to discover if psilocybin, a schedule one controlled psychedelic, was more effective at treating common mental illnesses than contemporary methods of treatment. However, along my journey I came to note a disturbing issue. Mental illness rates among youth have been on the rise at an alarming pace in the 21st century. Some claim a correlation between social media use in the 21st century and mental illness rates henceforth blaming screen time as a large contributing factor in the absurd rise of youth mental illness. Others with an enigma towards mushrooms reject considering medicinal psilocybin treatment methods stating psilocybin is just an addictive drug or hasn’t been studied long enough, a stigma promoted heavily by the war on drugs. I realized to answer this question I had to first confront these rates, their origins and relationships.
Unfortunately, the exponential rise in rates of mental illness is not a new observation. A surfacing concern is the longevity and severity it displays if left ill-treated and carried into adulthood since minimal research follows effected youth into adulthood. Treatment options for mentally ill youth today consist of therapy sessions, inpatient and outpatient programs, and most common among the public, prescription psychotropic medications. Considering the innovative domain western medicine has established itself as internationally It was most surprising that data showed, over time, even if rates of treatment rose the rates of effected did not fall but rose instead. With such a significant observation my research in essence compiled the facts and findings of multiple scientific studies highlighting the ineffectiveness of contemporary treatment, especially in comparison to psilocybin trials. It is with this realization that I contest the negative stigma concerning psilocybin, and argue psilocybin is more effective at treating common mental illnesses than contemporary methods of treatment and would be more effective at curing mental illnesses on the rise among youth.
To establish the pharmaceutical industry’s influence in adolescent everyday life, I explored the frequency with which current methods, like prescription pills, are relied on to treat mental illness. As expected, the use of psychotropic medication in youth has been on the rise in proportion to the increase in prevalence of mental illness among youth. Upon further review, there was slight but very little indication of a decrease in the effects of mental illness among treated individuals that were diagnosed with an illness. With this observation the question of current methods being ineffective treatment versus a real cure arose.
An international study conducted in 2000 compared the prevalence of psychotropic medication use among a cumulative 594,621 youth respondents aged 0-19 (Zito et al. 1). The increasing prevalence of psychotropic medication use is an indication youth is expressing its growing need to combat these mental illnesses. Evidence shows, the prevalence of receiving a psychotropic medication during the year 2000 was highest at age 10-14 for every country throughout the study (Zito et el. 3). Furthermore, German 15-19 year old’s were found three times more likely to use antidepressants than their younger counterparts, likewise further examination revealed 15-19 year old US youth also was 28 percent more likely to use antidepressants than their younger counterparts (Zito et al. 4). While the reports statistics detail the increasing need for effective treatment overall, it’s more important to note the need for effective treatment becoming more crucial as youth reaches later years of adolescents.
In the 21st century manufacturing pills was most efficient and therefore psychotropic medications production was industrialized. Industrializing gave the pharmaceutical industry the ability and bandwidth to reach every effected individual with a treatment, but not the consistency in its treatment to successfully heal every effected individual. This considerable disparity, noted in 2 different countries, in medicated need between older teenagers and younger teenagers is suspicious. The medical industry treats to cure, not to keep treating. Data yielding increasing need for psychotropic medication for our youth at older adolescent years over time displays clear lack in the current medical industries ability to consistently provide effective treatment to them. Current methods need to be reassessed and reevaluated.
Therefore, the question of medicinal psilocybin integration comes into play. Most of society is unaware of the diverse medicinal benefits mushrooms have since the last non-government regulated research programs on psilocybin were shut down in the 1970’s. In the absence of knowledge and experience required to make use of psilocybin the ignorance among people can be credited to the vilified stigma heavily pushed during the war on drugs. This stigma developed mushrooms a negative narrative that resulted in skeptics focusing on the party uses of the drug and reserving an enigma about the medicinal benefits of psilocybin. Psilocybin by proxy of association, and as the main hallucinogen in most mushrooms also, holds a particularly negative narrative as a drug. But in actuality, mushrooms have been used for thousands of years as healing agents, immune boosters, and disease treatment (Stamets, Zwickey. 1).
Paul Stamets the leading mycologist in his field proclaims, “even penicillin came from a type of fungus” (Stamets, Zwickey. 1). Penicillin, a revolutionary antibacterial agent that has saved millions of lives hosts the same birthplace as psilocybin. Essentially, the pillars of some of our most ground breaking medical advancements stick in the ground of ancient mushroom and fungal treatment methods.
Stamets goes on to explain in an interview, “This is why the antibiotics we derive from fungi are so potent against bacteria. We actually share about 30% of our genes with fungi, and we benefit from the antibiotics because we have the same microbial enemies as the mushrooms” (Stamets, Paul. Can Mushrooms Help Save The World. By Bonnie J. Horrigan. 3).
Stamets reiterates the similarities we share with mushrooms often forgotten. Our shared genes and bacterial enemies further illuminate what peaks a natural gravitation towards psilocybin integration research. Psychedelics, especially mushrooms, are vilified more often than not for being abused by a percentage of users. Stamets life work compiles thousands of years of ancestral use for mushrooms that eliminate the shallow misconception that mushrooms or psilocybin have uses limited to taboo party drugs. From small pox to HIV and even bird flu viruses the applications and potentials of what psilocybin mushrooms can treat are still not all disclosed (Stamets, Paul. Can Mushrooms Help Save The World. By Bonnie J. Horrigan. 5).
Uniquely, what is disclosed is psychedelics have been recorded in some trials treating two mental illnesses. This dual treatment quality is compelling since depression and anxiety, the two most common forms of mental illness on the rise recently, have a comorbidity about them in effected individuals. Ideally, illnesses that occur together can be treated together and contemporary methods do not often display their capability to treat that efficiently. More research and difference can be made with researching medicinal Psilocybin integration.
The urgency to modify current treatment methods grows, especially in more recent years. From 1991 to 2018 a focused study conducted on major depressive episodes and major depressive disorder, in 8th to 12th graders, found a 29% increase in the prevalence of diagnosable major depressive disorder, or MDD, among all youth respondents over the 28 years (Keyes et al. 987). Trends in the survey scores of over a million youth respondents across survey years revealed national rates of depression among adolescents growing specifically from 2012 onward and peaking in 2018 (Keyes et al. 988). A detailed examination shows rates of prescription medication use increasing substantially starting in the mid 1990’s and a consecutive observation showed female suicide rates had tripled from 1999 to 2014 (Keyes et al. 992). For treatment to be effective it has to work towards curing an individual. It is crucial to recognize that mortality rates from depression are tripling themselves over time following the same years psychotropic medication treatment was prescribed at its documented highest. The worst outcome of a major depressive episode is self-harm or suicide. For the worst-case scenarios occurrence for MDD, such as suicide, to triple in under 15 years while simultaneously treatment increases, it’s a direct indication of ineffective treatment for MDD. It’s indisputable current psychotropic medications for depression are only prolonging an already expensive, ineffective method of treatment.
Similarly, a case study conducted in the Midwest, in Dane County, anonymously surveyed 44,351 high school kids over 3 intervals between 2012 and 2018. (Parodi et al. 130). Among the 24 urban, suburban and rural high school’s surveyed responses revealed, “34.1% of all adolescent respondents met screening criteria for anxiety in 2012. Higher prevalence estimates were documented in 2015 and 2018, with 37.7% and 44% of youth meeting screening criteria for anxiety, respectively” (Parodi et al. 130). This cross-sectional research displayed an aggressive increase of at least 10% in the presence of anxiety among youth (Parodi et al. 130). Notably, anxiety in youth increased 10% in six years from 2012 to 2018, while previous data recorded depression increasing 29% over twenty-eight years, from 1991 to 2018 (Parodi et al. 130).
In a comparison, its indisputable in more recent years the rates of mental illness for anxiety are increasing at a substantially faster rate than depression. However, in recognition of the comorbidity anxiety shares with depression it’s only a matter of time before rates of depression follow suit. Furthermore, the rates of both anxiety and depression were confirmed peaking in the same year, 2018. These identical trends observed across the Midwest study and previously mentioned MDD trials are confirmation that contemporary methods, mainly psychotropic medication, are struggling to keep up with surges in the amount of effected because of a lack in treatment success as opposed to a lack in supply of prescription medication. Some that try and decipher origins of these erratic growth rates have pointed fingers in the direction of social media and technology’s relationship with youth as a main influence.
An argument exists that time spent around technology needs to be adjusted since its causing increases in prevalence of mental illness. A journal article examining self-reported survey data from a 2015 cohort study, that used a time use diary approach to collect data found a potential influence for the increasing rates of mental illness. Of the 11,884 individual cohort members in the observed study, time use diary data reported, “For females, increasing time spent on social media was associated with a greater number of depressive symptoms-” and “-For females, increasing time spent on social media was associated with increased risk of poor self-esteem” (Barthorpe et al. 3). Collected responses from the time use diary or TUD, modeled a slight correlation between screen time and increased symptoms of mental illness. With this new discovery one might argue enough evidence now exists that our research should be refocused towards social media usage among effected youth. Ironically, further study revealed, “There was little evidence for an association between time spent on social media and either depression or self-esteem in males” (Barthorpe et al. 3). The disparity in results between researched boys and girls amplifies my counterargument screen time is not a large contributing factor for mental illness increases. The fact that data displays boys are essentially unaffected by screen time and girls are significantly affected by it means data is inconclusive and therefore even if females demonstrated a correlation the argument is no longer fully valid. Additionally, reassessing screen time is useless in the 21st century, since technology is so integrated its borderline unavoidable at this point. While information can be gained from researching the source of these rates, having an effective treatment always available is most important. Therefore, more conclusive data can be yielded and more can be treated by researching psilocybin treatment.
The most acknowledged and by proxy known form of psilocybin mushroom treatment is known as micro dosing, characterized by incremental ingestion of 0.1 to 0.3 grams of psilocybin daily or weekly, “doses small enough to not impact regular functioning” (Rootman et al. 1). The method of micro dosing is the most acknowledged psilocybin treatment method because it has provided the most benefits of all psilocybin treatments in recorded trials.
A longitudinal, micro dosing research study involving 1,133 adults took place by asking study members to ingest psilocybin in small micro doses 3-5 days a week (Rootman et al. 3). Subsequently, effected study members were then asked to periodically track their feelings of anxiety, depression, stress and cognitive functioning on day 1 and day 30 each month. (Rootman et al. 3). Using DASS-21, PANAS, and Finger Tap Tasks tests to measure all these progressions revealed, “Among microdosers with Mental Health Concerns, scores on depression changed from 18.85 at baseline to 11.73 at Month-1; for anxiety, 11.04 at baseline to 7.46 at Month-1; and for stress, 19.93 at baseline to 13.91 at Month-1” (Rootman et al. 5). This data is fully reflective of the superior efficiency psilocybin can treat mental illness with, highlighted by the immediate decrease in score rates across the board following a small 30-day treatment. Psilocybin has achieved more benefits in one example of a 30-day trial than most prescription psychotropics have in the latest years of development let the record indicate. In like manner, psilocybin treatment was witnessed decreasing scores in depression and anxiety, the two most common mental illnesses, which is testimony to the consistency psilocybin treatment can offer.
Furthermore, including depression and anxiety, micro dosing as a method of psilocybin treatment has also been recorded treating OCD, PTSD and substance abuse. As adolescents transition to adulthood their anxiety diagnoses can manifest as obsessive compulsive disorder or OCD in adulthood. Likewise post-traumatic stress disorder or PTSD, can be developed into adulthood from adolescents incurring multiple severe major depressive episodes.
In a meta-analysis published by the National Library of Medicine, 9 independent studies measuring micro dosing effects on young adults suffering with mental illness were compared yielding similar success in treating young adults with OCD and PTSD (Irizarry et al. 1). The 9 configured articles were unrelated to one another and therefore properly represent a diverse, unbiased pool of respondents. Aggregated data revealed the confidence interval for OCD and PTSD treatment is getting smaller along with recurring micro dosing treatments of psilocybin (Irizarry et al. 9). This means the uncertainty around estimates of psilocybin treatment effectiveness for OCD and PTSD is decreasing with successive treatments. Since it’s so important to maintain stable mental health as an individual transitions to adulthood, its notable that psilocybin’s cohesive ability to treat 4 different forms of mental illness in youth and young adults make it a formidable adversary for contemporary methods to compete with. Psilocybin’s ability to reach all effected, its consistent effectiveness in treating all it reaches, and the efficiency to do it with better qualitative results than contemporary methods is why psilocybin treatment is superior.
A stigma earlier mentioned surrounding psilocybin, exists that psilocybin is addictive much like other illegal substances. Instead as a psychedelic, people’s ignorance often gets the best of them and they only focus on the hallucinogenic effects widely known of from psilocybin mushrooms. Not only is psilocybin not addictive, but it is a non-addictive treatment amongst contemporary methods some of which are themselves addictive.
A population study on psychedelics and the mental health of 130,152 respondents found 21,967 respondents of the total amount reported lifetime psychedelic use (Krebs et al. 1). The data taken from the National Survey of Drug Use and Health reaffirms new research on the long-term effects of psilocybin use, “Among the specific psychedelics, lifetime psilocybin use was associated with lower rates of serious psychological distress, a lower rate of inpatient mental health treatment, and psychiatric medication prescription” (Krebs et al. 3). Its conclusive as a matter of material fact based upon research results that psilocybin is perpetually the best form of mental health treatment. Even if it’s not in the form of micro dosing psilocybin is consistently outperforming contemporary methods in its results. Whether it’s in the short span of a month or observed in the broad scale of a year psilocybin as a natural supplement is valid in its ability to successfully treat, multiple different forms of mental illness, more successfully and in less time than common contemporary methods. The final element however that makes psilocybin treatment most optimal in comparison to all contemporary methods is the ease with which It can be integrated.
What’s often wondered is the transition that is undergone when partaking in a form of psychedelic treatment. A 2019 study in Slovenia following 68 psychedelic mushroom users and their individualistic uses, routines, and practices they undergo with psilocybin mushrooms throughout a week or month found the transition to be rather unclimactic (Fatur 1). The course of the study exposed 91% of the participants used psilocybe spp specifically, as their chosen form of psychedelic mushroom, and furthermore ingested doses in shakes, sandwiches, and even drinks (Fatur 3). Regardless of treatment purposes, psychedelic users ranged from 18 years old to 56 hoping to treat mental illness in the young and cognitive impairment in the old (Fatur 5). The most notable trait psilocybin has that makes it a good treatment is the ease of its integration into a user’s life, regardless of a person’s age, or a place, nor food or drink. Moreso, the ease of its integration into daily life illustrated by various locals’ subjective purpose for using psilocybin in conjunction with its high success rate among micro dosing trials are what push psilocybin closer to a definitive cure than a treatment. Nevertheless, micro dosing trials in affiliation with psilocybin treatments yield more progress towards mental health than psychotropic medication or any prescription pill in less time. Therefore, it is an irrefutable matter that psilocybin is more effective at curing mental illness then even the most common contemporary methods.
I set out to discover if psilocybin was a better form of treatment for mental illness than contemporary methods of treatment. When comparing contemporary methods like prescription psychotropic medication and inpatient programs for both depression and anxiety, to micro dosing psilocybin treatments or one-time large dose trials psilocybin always yielded better before and after results. It soon became clear that psilocybin was a natural healer. Psilocybin showed its ability to heal as the need for healing became more significant in older adolescents reaching adulthood. Once results established that psilocybin could treat anxiety, depression, OCD and PTSD better than one prescription pill could MDD, it was evident psilocybin was more effective at treating common mental illnesses than contemporary methods. In light of research, I concluded part of the key driver that separates psilocybin as a cure from contemporary methods is the culmination of its recurrence in effectiveness in concurrence with the instinctive yet smooth, ability to be integrated into any user’s life. Just as the youth of today is tomorrow’s adult, its important mental illness rates are kept in check especially when youth transitions into adulthood. Since increasing mental illness rates don’t show a chance of slowing down, it’s important we establish a fair, long-lasting treatment sooner than later. The youth is our future, and their mental illness rates now are left unchecked it could decide our future if forgotten.
Works Cited:
Barthorpe, Amber, et al. “Is Social Media Screen Time really Associated with Poor Adolescent Mental Health? A Time use Diary Study.” Journal of Affective Disorders, vol. 274, no. May 2020, pp. 864-870.
Fatur, Karsten. “Peculiar Plants and Fantastic Fungi: An Ethnobotanical Study of the use of Hallucinogenic Plants and Mushrooms in Slovenia.” PLoS One, vol. 16, no. 1, Jan. 2021, pp. 1-26.
Irizarry, Ricardo. et al. “Psilocybin as a Treatment for Psychiatric Illness: A Meta-Analysis.” Cureus, vol. 14, no. 11, Nov. 2022, pp. 1-18
Keyes, Katherine M. et al. “Recent Increases in Depressive Symptoms Among US Adolescents: Trends From 1991 to 2018.” Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology, vol. 54, March. 2019, pp. 987-996.
Krebs, Teri S. et al. “Psychedelics and Mental Health: A Population Study.” PLoS One, vol. 8, no. 8, Aug. 2013, pp. 1-9
Parodi, Katharine B. et al. “Time Trends and Disparities in Anxiety Among Adolescents, 2012–2018.” Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology, vol. 57, June. 2021, pp. 127-137.
Rootman, Joseph M. et al. “Psilocybin Microdosers Demonstrate Greater Observed Improvements in Mood and Mental Health at one Month Relative to Non-microdosing Controls.” Scientific Reports, vol. 12, no. 1, Jun. 2022, pp. 1-10.
Stamet, Paul. “Can Mushrooms Help Save The World?” Bonnie J. Horrigan, March 2006, https://www-sciencedirect com.esearch.ut.edu/science/article/pii/S15?via%3Dihub.
---. and Heather Zwickey. “Medicinal Mushrooms: Ancient Remedies Meet Modern Science.” Integrative Medicine: A Clinician’s Journal, vol. 13, no. 1, Feb. 2014, pp. 46-47.
Zito, Julie M. et al. “A Three-Country Comparison of Psychotropic Medication Prevalence in Youth.” Child Adolescent Psychiatry Mental Health, vol. 2, no. 26, Sep. 2008, pp. 1-8
