Psychedelic drugs such acid, ecstasy and magic mushrooms have been making a resurgence as a medicine to treat a range of illnesses from post traumatic stress disorder to end of life anxiety.
Now researchers at the University of B.C. say the drugs may help curb domestic violence committed by men with substance abuse problems.
The UBC Okanagan study, published last week in the Journal of Psychopharmacology, found that 42 per cent of U.S. adult male inmates who did not take psychedelic drugs were arrested within six years for domestic battery after their release, compared to a rate of 27 per cent for those who had taken drugs such as LSD, psilocybin (magic mushrooms) and MDMA (ecstasy.)
The observational study followed 302 inmates, between the ages of 17 and 40, for an average of six years after they were released. All those observed were serving sentences of one year or less at a county jail in Illinois, and all had histories of substance use disorders, according to the study. Seventy-two per cent of all participants had prior charges for violent crimes.
The participants were interviewed during incarceration about their past hallucinogen use. Of those who had experimented with hallucinogenic drugs, most of them (87 per cent) had tried more than one of the more well-known psychedelic drugs such as magic mushrooms, LSD and MDMA.
Following release from jail, researchers used a U.S. law enforcement database to monitor arrests for domestic violence. The researchers were unable to account for violence that was not reported to police.
One of the researchers Zach Walsh, the co-director for UBC Okanagan’s Centre for the Advancement of Psychological Science and Law, says overall the study speaks to the public health potential of psychedelic medicine in contrast to prevailing attitudes that these drugs are harmful.
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UBC researcher Zach Walsh (UBC photo)
“As existing treatments for intimate partner violence are insufficient, we need to take new perspectives such as this seriously,” he said.
Walsh said with proper dosage, set, and setting, scientists might see “even more profound effects.”
Since most of the participants who had tried psychedelics, had tried more than one type, the team did not extrapolate which drug they believed to be having the most impact on reducing violence. It does note, however, that there is evidence to suggest that MDMA may foster intimacy and improve communication, which may lead to less violence against family members.
“That’s one thing that we would like to look at more closely,” he said. “With MDMA maybe you stop drinking and that leads to better functioning in relationships. We know it’s associated with increasing empathy.”
Scientists are studying whether hallucinogens can lead to what they refer to as quantum change, rapid change in an individual’s behaviour based on a profound experience, said Walsh.
“The experiences of unity, positivity, and transcendence that characterize the psychedelic experience may be particularly beneficial to groups that are frequently marginalized and isolated, such as the incarcerated men who participated in this study,” said Walsh.
However, Walsh noted that this was not a clinical study and the area of study needs much more research.
The findings challenge the stigmatization and criminalization of hallucinogens due to putatively harmful social effects, and add to the re-emerging literature on the therapeutic potential of these ancient medicines, the study concludes.
The study was co-authored by University of Alabama associate professor Peter Hendricks, who said although the research is still new, one explanation is that these drugs can provide profoundly meaningful spiritual experiences that highlight what matters most.
“Often, people are struck by the realization that behaving with compassion and kindness toward others is high on the list of what matters,” he said, in a UBC statement.
While research on the benefits of psychedelic drugs took place in the 1950 to the 1970s, primarily to treat mental illness, it was stopped due to the reclassification of the drugs to a controlled substance in the mid-1970s. LSD, MDMA and psilocybin continue to be classified as illegal substances in Canada.
However, there has been a renewed interest in psychedelic medicine in recent years, with studies being conducted around the world. In Vancouver, for example, scientists with the Canadian Multidisciplinary Association of Psychedelic Studies are about to begin phase 3 of a clinical trial using MDMA to treat PTSD, after recording a high rate of success in the phase 2 trial, particularly with military veterans.
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