Psilocybin mushroom
Encyclopedia
Psilocybin mushrooms are fungi
that contain the psychoactive compounds psilocybin
and psilocin
. There are multiple colloquial terms for psilocybin mushrooms, the most common being shrooms or magic mushrooms.
Biological genera
containing psilocybin mushrooms include Agrocybe
, Conocybe
, Copelandia
, Galerina
, Gerronema
, Gymnopilus
, Hypholoma
, Inocybe
, Mycena
, Panaeolus
, Pluteus
, and Psilocybe
. There are approximately 190 species of psilocybin mushrooms and most of them fall in the genus Psilocybe.
There is some archaeological evidence for the use of psyilocybin-containing mushrooms in ancient times. Several mesolithic
rock paintings from Tassili n'Ajjer
(a prehistoric North African
site identified with the Capsian culture
) have been identified by author Giorgio Samorini
as possibly depicting the shamanic use of mushrooms, possibly Psilocybe. Hallucinogenic species of Psilocybe have a history of use among the native peoples of Mesoamerica
for religious communion, divination, and healing, from pre-Columbian times up to the present day. Mushroom-shaped statuettes found at archaeological sites seem to indicate that ritual use of hallucinogenic mushrooms is quite ancient. Mushroom stones and motifs have been found in Mayan temple ruins in Guatemala
, though there is considerable controversy as to whether these objects indicate the use of hallucinogenic mushrooms or whether they had some other significance with the mushroom shape being simply a coincidence. More concretely, a statuette dating from ca. 200 AD and depicting a mushroom strongly resembling Psilocybe mexicana
was found in a west Mexican shaft and chamber tomb
in the state of Colima
.
Hallucinogenic Psilocybe were known to the Aztecs as teonanácatl (literally "divine mushroom" - agglutinative form of teó (god, sacred) and nanácatl (mushroom) in Náhuatl) and were reportedly served at the coronation of the Aztec
ruler Moctezuma II
in 1502. Aztecs and Mazatecs referred to psilocybin mushrooms as genius mushrooms, divinatory mushrooms, and wondrous mushrooms, when translated into English. Bernardino de Sahagún
reported ritualistic use of teonanácatl by the Aztecs, when he traveled to Central America after the expedition of Hernán Cortés
.
After the Spanish conquest, Catholic missionaries campaigned against the "pagan idolatry," and as a result the use of hallucinogenic plants and mushrooms like other pre-Christian traditions was quickly suppressed. The Spanish believed the mushroom allowed the Aztecs and others to communicate with "devils". In converting people to Catholicism
, the Spanish pushed for a switch from teonanácatl to the Catholic sacrament of the Eucharist
. Despite this history, in some remote areas, the use of teonanácatl has remained.
The first mention of hallucinogenic mushrooms in the Western medicinal literature appeared in the London Medical and Physical Journal in 1799: a man had served Psilocybe semilanceata mushrooms that he had picked for breakfast in London
's Green Park
to his family. The doctor who treated them later described how the youngest child "was attacked with fits of immoderate laughter, nor could the threats of his father or mother refrain him."
In 1955, Valentina and R. Gordon Wasson became the first Westerners
to actively participate in an indigenous mushroom ceremony. The Wassons did much to publicize their discovery, even publishing an article on their experiences in Life
in 1957. In 1956 Roger Heim
identified the hallucinogenic mushroom that the Wassons had brought back from Mexico as Psilocybe, and in 1958, Albert Hofmann
first identified psilocin and psilocybin as the active compounds in these mushrooms.
Inspired by the Wassons' Life article, Timothy Leary
traveled to Mexico to experience hallucinogenic mushrooms firsthand. Upon returning to Harvard in 1960, he and Richard Alpert started the Harvard Psilocybin Project
, promoting psychological and religious study of psilocybin and other hallucinogenic drugs. After Leary and Alpert were dismissed by Harvard in 1963, they turned their attention toward promoting the psychedelic experience
to the nascent hippie
counterculture
.
The popularization of entheogens by Wasson, Leary, authors Terence McKenna
and Robert Anton Wilson
, and others has led to an explosion in the use of hallucinogenic Psilocybe throughout the world. By the early 1970s, a number of psychoactive Psilocybe species were described from temperate North America, Europe, and Asia and were widely collected. Books describing methods of cultivating Psilocybe cubensis
in large quantities were also published. The availability of hallucinogenic Psilocybe from wild and cultivated sources has made it among the most widely used of the hallucinogenic drugs.
At present, hallucinogenic mushroom use has been reported among a number of groups spanning from central Mexico to Oaxaca, including groups of Nahua, Mixtecs, Mixe
, Mazatecs, Zapotecs, and others. An important figure of mushroom usage in Mexico was Maria Sabina
.
and psilocin
. They do create short-term increases in tolerance of users, thus making it difficult to abuse them because the more often they are taken within a short period of time, the weaker the resultant effects are. Poisonous (sometimes lethal) wild picked mushrooms can be easily mistaken for psilocybin mushrooms. When psilocybin is ingested, it is broken down to produce psilocin
, which is responsible for the hallucinogenic effects.
As with many psychedelic substances, the effects of psychedelic mushrooms are subjective and can vary considerably among individual users. The mind-altering effects of psilocybin-containing mushrooms typically last anywhere from 3 to 8 hours depending on dosage, preparation method, and personal metabolism. However, the effects can seem to last much longer because of psilocybin's ability to alter time perception.
Some users suffer from hallucinogen persisting perception disorder
although how many, and why, is unknown. Perceptual disturbances causing discomfort are rarely reported after using psylocybin, but they may be more likely if the drug is mixed with cannabis
. There have been reports of such disturbances lasting 5 years or more. Magic mushrooms have also been controversially associated with long term effects such as panic attacks, depression
and paranoid delusions. On the other hand, magic mushrooms were rated as causing some of the least damage in the UK compared to other recreational drugs
by experts in a study by the Independent Scientific Committee on Drugs
. Other researchers have said that the main chemical component (psilocybin) is "remarkably non-toxic to the body's organ systems", explaining that the risks are indirect: higher dosages are more likely to cause fear and may result in dangerous behavior.
One study found that the most desirable results may come from starting with very low doses first, and trying slightly higher doses over months. The researchers explain that the peak experiences occur at quantities that are only slightly lower than a sort of anxiety threshold. Although risks of experiencing fear and anxiety increased somewhat consistently along with dosage and overall quality of experience, at dosages exceeding the individual's threshold, there was suddenly greater increases in anxiety than before. In other words, after finding the optimum dose, there are diminishing returns
for using more (since risks of anxiety now increase at a greater rate).
s or images, objects that warp, morph, or change solid colors; a sense of melting into the environment, and trails behind moving objects
. Sounds seem to be heard with increased clarity; music, for example, can often take on a profound sense of cadence and depth. Some users experience synesthesia
, wherein they perceive, for example, a visualization of color upon hearing a particular sound.
As with other psychedelics
such as LSD, the experience, or "trip," is strongly dependent upon set and setting
. A negative environment could likely induce a bad trip
, whereas a comfortable and familiar environment would allow for a pleasant experience. Many users find it preferable to ingest the mushrooms with friends, people they're familiar with, or people who are also 'tripping'.
government funded a randomized and double-blinded study by Johns Hopkins University
which studied the spiritual effects of psilocybin
in particular. That is, they did not use mushrooms specifically (in fact, each individual mushroom piece can vary wildly in psilocybin and psilocin content). The study involved 36 college-educated adults (average age of 46) who had never tried psilocybin nor had a history of drug use, and who had religious or spiritual interests. The participants were closely observed for eight-hour intervals in a laboratory while under the influence of psilocybin mushrooms.
One-third of the participants reported that the experience was the single most spiritually significant moment of their lives and more than two-thirds reported it was among the top five most spiritually significant experiences. Two months after the study, 79% of the participants reported increased well-being or satisfaction; friends, relatives, and associates confirmed this. They also reported anxiety and depression symptoms to be decreased or completely gone.
Despite highly controlled conditions to minimize adverse effects, 22% of subjects (8 of 36) had notable experiences of fear, some with paranoia. The authors, however, reported that all these instances were "readily managed with reassurance."
There have been calls for medical investigation of the use of synthetic and mushroom-derived psilocybin for the development of improved treatments of various mental conditions, including chronic cluster headache
s, following numerous anecdotal reports of benefits. There are also several accounts of psilocybin mushrooms sending both obsessive-compulsive disorder
s ("OCD") and OCD-related clinical depression
(both being widespread and debilitating mental health
conditions) into complete remission immediately and for up to months at a time, compared to current medications which often have both limited efficacy and frequent undesirable side-effects. One such study states:
, is approximately 1 to 2.5 gram
s, while about 2.5 to 5 grams dried mushroom material is considered a strong dose. Above 5 dried grams is often considered a heavy dose.
The concentration of active psilocybin mushroom compounds varies not only from species to species, but also from mushroom to mushroom inside a given species, subspecies or variety. The same holds true even for different parts of the same mushroom. In the species Psilocybe samuiensis
Guzmán, Bandala and Allen, the dried cap of the mushroom contains the most psilocybin at about 0.23%–0.90%. The mycelia contain about 0.24%–0.32%.
. Schedule I drugs are deemed to have a high potential for abuse and are not recognized for medical use. However, psilocybin mushrooms are not covered by UN drug treaties.
From a letter, dated Sept 13, 2001, from Herbert Schaepe, Secretary of the UN International Narcotics Control Board
, to the Dutch Ministry of Health:
Psilocybin mushrooms are regulated or prohibited in many countries, often carrying severe legal penalties (for example, the U.S. Psychotropic Substances Act
, the UK Misuse of Drugs Act 1971
and Drugs Act 2005, and the Canadian Controlled Drugs and Substances Act
).
Magic mushrooms in their fresh form still remain legal in some countries including Spain, Austria, and Canada. On November 29, 2008, The Netherlands announced it would ban the cultivation and use of psilocybin-containing fungi beginning December 1, 2008. The UK ban on fresh mushrooms (dried ones were illegal as they were considered a psilocybin-containing preparation) introduced in 2005 came under much criticism, but was rushed through at the end of the 2001-2005 Parliament; until then magic mushrooms had been sold in the UK.
New Mexico appeals court ruled on June 14, 2005, that growing psilocybin mushrooms for personal consumption could not be considered "manufacturing a controlled substance" under state law. However it still remains illegal under federal law.
Fungus
A fungus is a member of a large group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and molds , as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are classified as a kingdom, Fungi, which is separate from plants, animals, and bacteria...
that contain the psychoactive compounds psilocybin
Psilocybin
Psilocybin is a naturally occurring psychedelic prodrug, with mind-altering effects similar to those of LSD and mescaline, after it is converted to psilocin. The effects can include altered thinking processes, perceptual distortions, an altered sense of time, and spiritual experiences, as well as...
and psilocin
Psilocin
Psilocin , an aromatic compound, sometimes also spelled psilocine, psilocyn, or psilotsin, is a psychedelic mushroom alkaloid. It is found in most psychedelic mushrooms together with its phosphorylated counterpart psilocybin...
. There are multiple colloquial terms for psilocybin mushrooms, the most common being shrooms or magic mushrooms.
Biological genera
Genera
Genera is a commercial operating system and development environment for Lisp machines developed by Symbolics. It is essentially a fork of an earlier operating system originating on the MIT AI Lab's Lisp machines which Symbolics had used in common with LMI and Texas Instruments...
containing psilocybin mushrooms include Agrocybe
Agrocybe
Agrocybe, including edible fungi such as the Agrocybe cylindracea, is a genus of mushroom with similar characteristics to the Tricholoma matsutake, Agrocybe aegerita and Agrocybe parasitica. Some are poisonous mushrooms...
, Conocybe
Conocybe
The genus Conocybe is a genus of mushrooms consisting of Conocybe tenera and at least 243 other species, with at least 50 species in North America....
, Copelandia
Copelandia
Copelandia is a genus of mushrooms consisting of at least 12 species. Most Copelandia species have a long, thin fragile stem and are delicate, growing in grasslands on dead moss, dead grass, sand dunes, decayed wood, and dung. They are found in the tropics and neotropics of both hemispheres...
, Galerina
Galerina
Galerina is a genus of small brown-spored saprobic mushrooms, with over 300 species found throughout the world, from the far north to remote Macquarie Island in the Southern Ocean. Species are typically small and hygrophanous, with a slender and brittle stem. They are often found growing on wood,...
, Gerronema
Gerronema
Gerronema is a genus of small- to medium-sized lignicolous agarics with white, nonamyloid, basidiospores and decurrent lamellae. The genus, first described by American mycologist Rolf Singer in 1951, contains 13 species.-Description:...
, Gymnopilus
Gymnopilus
Gymnopilus is a genus of gilled mushrooms within the fungal family Strophariaceae containing about 200 rusty-orange spored mushroom species formerly divided among Pholiota and the defunct genus Flammula. The fruiting body is typically reddish brown to rusty orange to yellow, medium to large,...
, Hypholoma
Hypholoma
Fungi of the genus Hypholoma are quite well known due to the commonness of Sulphur Tuft on stumps in temperate woodlands. This species is easily recognizable because the dark spores create a distinctive greenish effect on the yellow cap underside...
, Inocybe
Inocybe
Inocybe is a large, complex genus of mushrooms. Members of Inocybe are mycorrhizal, and some evidence shows that the high degree of speciation in the genus is due to adaptation to different trees and perhaps even local environments.-Description:...
, Mycena
Mycena
Mycena is a large genus of small saprotrophic mushrooms that are rarely more than a few centimeters in width. They are characterized by a white spore print, a small conical or bell-shaped cap, and a thin fragile stem. Most are gray or brown, but a few species have brighter colors. Most have a...
, Panaeolus
Panaeolus
Panaeolus is a genus of small, black-spored, saprotrophic agarics. The word Panaeolus is Greek for "all variegated", alluding to the spotted gills of the mushrooms produced.- Characteristics :...
, Pluteus
Pluteus
Pluteus is a large genus of fungi with over 100 species. They are wood rotting saprobes with pink spore prints and gills that are free from the stem.Pluteus means shed or penthouse.-Characteristics of the genus :...
, and Psilocybe
Psilocybe
Psilocybe is a genus of small mushrooms growing worldwide. This genus is best known for its species with psychedelic or hallucinogenic properties, widely known as "magic mushrooms", though the majority of species do not contain hallucinogenic compounds...
. There are approximately 190 species of psilocybin mushrooms and most of them fall in the genus Psilocybe.
Early
Mesolithic
The Mesolithic is an archaeological concept used to refer to certain groups of archaeological cultures defined as falling between the Paleolithic and the Neolithic....
rock paintings from Tassili n'Ajjer
Tassili n'Ajjer
Tassili n'Ajjer is a mountain range in the Algerian section of the Sahara Desert. It is a vast plateau in south-east Algeria at the borders of Libya, Niger and Mali, covering an area of 72,000 sq...
(a prehistoric North African
Prehistoric Central North Africa
- Early and middle Paleolithic :Earlier inhabitants of central North Africa have left behind equally significant remains. Early remnants of hominid occupation in North Africa, for example, were found in Ain el Hanech, near Saïda ; in fact, more recent investigations have found signs of Oldowan...
site identified with the Capsian culture
Capsian culture
The Capsian culture was a Mesolithic culture of the Maghreb, which lasted from about 10,000 to 6,000 BCE.It was concentrated mainly in modern Tunisia, and Algeria, with some sites attested in southern Spain to Sicily....
) have been identified by author Giorgio Samorini
Giorgio Samorini
Giorgio Samorini is an ethnobotanist and psychedelics researcher. He has published many essays and monographs regarding the use of psychoactive compounds and sacred plants. He was a frequent contributor to, and sometime editor of Eleusis the Journal of Psychoactive Plants & Compounds.-Books:* ....
as possibly depicting the shamanic use of mushrooms, possibly Psilocybe. Hallucinogenic species of Psilocybe have a history of use among the native peoples of Mesoamerica
Mesoamerica
Mesoamerica is a region and culture area in the Americas, extending approximately from central Mexico to Belize, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica, within which a number of pre-Columbian societies flourished before the Spanish colonization of the Americas in the 15th and...
for religious communion, divination, and healing, from pre-Columbian times up to the present day. Mushroom-shaped statuettes found at archaeological sites seem to indicate that ritual use of hallucinogenic mushrooms is quite ancient. Mushroom stones and motifs have been found in Mayan temple ruins in Guatemala
Guatemala
Guatemala is a country in Central America bordered by Mexico to the north and west, the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, Belize to the northeast, the Caribbean to the east, and Honduras and El Salvador to the southeast...
, though there is considerable controversy as to whether these objects indicate the use of hallucinogenic mushrooms or whether they had some other significance with the mushroom shape being simply a coincidence. More concretely, a statuette dating from ca. 200 AD and depicting a mushroom strongly resembling Psilocybe mexicana
Psilocybe mexicana
Psilocybe mexicana is a psychedelic mushroom. It is from this species that Dr. Albert Hofmann first isolated and named the active compounds, psilocybin and psilocin in 1958. It was first used by the early natives of Central America and North America over 2,000 years ago, known to theAztecs as...
was found in a west Mexican shaft and chamber tomb
Shaft and chamber tomb
A Shaft and chamber tomb is a type of chamber tomb used by some ancient peoples for burial of the dead. They consist of a shaft dug into the outcrops of rock with a square or round chamber excavated at the bottom where the dead were placed....
in the state of Colima
Colima
Colima is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, make up the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It shares its name with its capital and main city, Colima....
.
Hallucinogenic Psilocybe were known to the Aztecs as teonanácatl (literally "divine mushroom" - agglutinative form of teó (god, sacred) and nanácatl (mushroom) in Náhuatl) and were reportedly served at the coronation of the Aztec
Aztec
The Aztec people were certain ethnic groups of central Mexico, particularly those groups who spoke the Nahuatl language and who dominated large parts of Mesoamerica in the 14th, 15th and 16th centuries, a period referred to as the late post-classic period in Mesoamerican chronology.Aztec is the...
ruler Moctezuma II
Moctezuma II
Moctezuma , also known by a number of variant spellings including Montezuma, Moteuczoma, Motecuhzoma and referred to in full by early Nahuatl texts as Motecuhzoma Xocoyotzin, was the ninth tlatoani or ruler of Tenochtitlan, reigning from 1502 to 1520...
in 1502. Aztecs and Mazatecs referred to psilocybin mushrooms as genius mushrooms, divinatory mushrooms, and wondrous mushrooms, when translated into English. Bernardino de Sahagún
Bernardino de Sahagún
Bernardino de Sahagún was a Franciscan friar, missionary priest and pioneering ethnographer who participated in the Catholic evangelization of colonial New Spain . Born in Sahagún, Spain, in 1499, he journeyed to New Spain in 1529, and spent more than 50 years conducting interviews regarding Aztec...
reported ritualistic use of teonanácatl by the Aztecs, when he traveled to Central America after the expedition of Hernán Cortés
Hernán Cortés
Hernán Cortés de Monroy y Pizarro, 1st Marquis of the Valley of Oaxaca was a Spanish Conquistador who led an expedition that caused the fall of the Aztec Empire and brought large portions of mainland Mexico under the rule of the King of Castile in the early 16th century...
.
After the Spanish conquest, Catholic missionaries campaigned against the "pagan idolatry," and as a result the use of hallucinogenic plants and mushrooms like other pre-Christian traditions was quickly suppressed. The Spanish believed the mushroom allowed the Aztecs and others to communicate with "devils". In converting people to Catholicism
Catholicism
Catholicism is a broad term for the body of the Catholic faith, its theologies and doctrines, its liturgical, ethical, spiritual, and behavioral characteristics, as well as a religious people as a whole....
, the Spanish pushed for a switch from teonanácatl to the Catholic sacrament of the Eucharist
Eucharist
The Eucharist , also called Holy Communion, the Sacrament of the Altar, the Blessed Sacrament, the Lord's Supper, and other names, is a Christian sacrament or ordinance...
. Despite this history, in some remote areas, the use of teonanácatl has remained.
The first mention of hallucinogenic mushrooms in the Western medicinal literature appeared in the London Medical and Physical Journal in 1799: a man had served Psilocybe semilanceata mushrooms that he had picked for breakfast in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
's Green Park
Green Park
-External links:*...
to his family. The doctor who treated them later described how the youngest child "was attacked with fits of immoderate laughter, nor could the threats of his father or mother refrain him."
Modern
Western culture
Western culture, sometimes equated with Western civilization or European civilization, refers to cultures of European origin and is used very broadly to refer to a heritage of social norms, ethical values, traditional customs, religious beliefs, political systems, and specific artifacts and...
to actively participate in an indigenous mushroom ceremony. The Wassons did much to publicize their discovery, even publishing an article on their experiences in Life
Life (magazine)
Life generally refers to three American magazines:*A humor and general interest magazine published from 1883 to 1936. Time founder Henry Luce bought the magazine in 1936 solely so that he could acquire the rights to its name....
in 1957. In 1956 Roger Heim
Roger Heim
Roger Heim was a French botanist specialising in mycology and tropical phytopathology. He was known for his studies describing the anatomy of the mushroom hymenium, the systematics and phylogeny of higher fungi , the mycology of tropical fungi such as...
identified the hallucinogenic mushroom that the Wassons had brought back from Mexico as Psilocybe, and in 1958, Albert Hofmann
Albert Hofmann
Albert Hofmann was a Swiss scientist known best for being the first person to synthesize, ingest and learn of the psychedelic effects of lysergic acid diethylamide . He authored more than 100 scientific articles and a number of books, including LSD: My Problem Child...
first identified psilocin and psilocybin as the active compounds in these mushrooms.
Inspired by the Wassons' Life article, Timothy Leary
Timothy Leary
Timothy Francis Leary was an American psychologist and writer, known for his advocacy of psychedelic drugs. During a time when drugs like LSD and psilocybin were legal, Leary conducted experiments at Harvard University under the Harvard Psilocybin Project, resulting in the Concord Prison...
traveled to Mexico to experience hallucinogenic mushrooms firsthand. Upon returning to Harvard in 1960, he and Richard Alpert started the Harvard Psilocybin Project
Harvard Psilocybin Project
The Harvard Psilocybin Project was a series of experiments in psychology conducted by Dr. Timothy Leary and Dr. Richard Alpert. The founding board of the project consisted of Leary, Aldous Huxley, John Spiegel , Leary's superior at Harvard University David McClelland, Frank Barron, Ralph Metzner,...
, promoting psychological and religious study of psilocybin and other hallucinogenic drugs. After Leary and Alpert were dismissed by Harvard in 1963, they turned their attention toward promoting the psychedelic experience
Psychedelic experience
The term "psychedelic experience" is vague – characterized by polyvalence or ambiguity due to its nature – however in modern psychopharmacological science as well as philosophical, psychological, neurological, spiritual-religious and most other ideological discourses it is understood as an altered...
to the nascent hippie
Hippie
The hippie subculture was originally a youth movement that arose in the United States during the mid-1960s and spread to other countries around the world. The etymology of the term 'hippie' is from hipster, and was initially used to describe beatniks who had moved into San Francisco's...
counterculture
Counterculture
Counterculture is a sociological term used to describe the values and norms of behavior of a cultural group, or subculture, that run counter to those of the social mainstream of the day, the cultural equivalent of political opposition. Counterculture can also be described as a group whose behavior...
.
The popularization of entheogens by Wasson, Leary, authors Terence McKenna
Terence McKenna
Terence Kemp McKenna was an Irish-American philosopher, psychonaut, researcher, teacher, lecturer and writer on many subjects, such as human consciousness, language, psychedelic drugs, the evolution of civilizations, the origin and end of the universe, alchemy, and extraterrestrial beings.-Early...
and Robert Anton Wilson
Robert Anton Wilson
Robert Anton Wilson , known to friends as "Bob", was an American author and polymath who became at various times a novelist, philosopher, psychologist, essayist, editor, playwright, poet, futurist, civil libertarian and self-described agnostic mystic...
, and others has led to an explosion in the use of hallucinogenic Psilocybe throughout the world. By the early 1970s, a number of psychoactive Psilocybe species were described from temperate North America, Europe, and Asia and were widely collected. Books describing methods of cultivating Psilocybe cubensis
Psilocybe cubensis
Psilocybe cubensis is a species of psychedelic mushroom whose principal active compounds are psilocybin and psilocin. Commonly called Boomers, Cubes or Gold Caps, it belongs to the Strophariaceae family of fungi and was previously known as Stropharia cubensis.-Taxonomy and naming:The species was...
in large quantities were also published. The availability of hallucinogenic Psilocybe from wild and cultivated sources has made it among the most widely used of the hallucinogenic drugs.
At present, hallucinogenic mushroom use has been reported among a number of groups spanning from central Mexico to Oaxaca, including groups of Nahua, Mixtecs, Mixe
Mixe
The Mixe or Mije is an indigenous group inhabiting the eastern highlands of the Mexican state of Oaxaca. They speak the Mixe languages which are classified in the Mixe–Zoque family, and are more culturally conservative than other indigenous groups of the region, maintaining their language to this...
, Mazatecs, Zapotecs, and others. An important figure of mushroom usage in Mexico was Maria Sabina
Maria Sabina
María Sabina was a Mazatec curandera who lived her entire life in a modest dwelling in the Sierra Mazateca of southern Mexico...
.
Effects
The effects of Psilocybin mushrooms come from psilocybinPsilocybin
Psilocybin is a naturally occurring psychedelic prodrug, with mind-altering effects similar to those of LSD and mescaline, after it is converted to psilocin. The effects can include altered thinking processes, perceptual distortions, an altered sense of time, and spiritual experiences, as well as...
and psilocin
Psilocin
Psilocin , an aromatic compound, sometimes also spelled psilocine, psilocyn, or psilotsin, is a psychedelic mushroom alkaloid. It is found in most psychedelic mushrooms together with its phosphorylated counterpart psilocybin...
. They do create short-term increases in tolerance of users, thus making it difficult to abuse them because the more often they are taken within a short period of time, the weaker the resultant effects are. Poisonous (sometimes lethal) wild picked mushrooms can be easily mistaken for psilocybin mushrooms. When psilocybin is ingested, it is broken down to produce psilocin
Psilocin
Psilocin , an aromatic compound, sometimes also spelled psilocine, psilocyn, or psilotsin, is a psychedelic mushroom alkaloid. It is found in most psychedelic mushrooms together with its phosphorylated counterpart psilocybin...
, which is responsible for the hallucinogenic effects.
As with many psychedelic substances, the effects of psychedelic mushrooms are subjective and can vary considerably among individual users. The mind-altering effects of psilocybin-containing mushrooms typically last anywhere from 3 to 8 hours depending on dosage, preparation method, and personal metabolism. However, the effects can seem to last much longer because of psilocybin's ability to alter time perception.
Some users suffer from hallucinogen persisting perception disorder
Hallucinogen persisting perception disorder
Hallucinogen persisting perception disorder is a disorder characterized by a continual presence of visual disturbances that are reminiscent of those generated by the ingestion of hallucinogenic substances. Previous use of hallucinogens by the person is needed, though not sufficient, for...
although how many, and why, is unknown. Perceptual disturbances causing discomfort are rarely reported after using psylocybin, but they may be more likely if the drug is mixed with cannabis
Cannabis
Cannabis is a genus of flowering plants that includes three putative species, Cannabis sativa, Cannabis indica, and Cannabis ruderalis. These three taxa are indigenous to Central Asia, and South Asia. Cannabis has long been used for fibre , for seed and seed oils, for medicinal purposes, and as a...
. There have been reports of such disturbances lasting 5 years or more. Magic mushrooms have also been controversially associated with long term effects such as panic attacks, depression
Depression (mood)
Depression is a state of low mood and aversion to activity that can affect a person's thoughts, behaviour, feelings and physical well-being. Depressed people may feel sad, anxious, empty, hopeless, helpless, worthless, guilty, irritable, or restless...
and paranoid delusions. On the other hand, magic mushrooms were rated as causing some of the least damage in the UK compared to other recreational drugs
Recreational drug use
Recreational drug use is the use of a drug, usually psychoactive, with the intention of creating or enhancing recreational experience. Such use is controversial, however, often being considered to be also drug abuse, and it is often illegal...
by experts in a study by the Independent Scientific Committee on Drugs
Independent Scientific Committee on Drugs
The Independent Scientific Committee on Drugs is a UK-based independent drugs advisory committee set up and chaired by Professor David Nutt. It was officially launched on 15 January 2010 with the help of the Centre for Crime and Justice Studies...
. Other researchers have said that the main chemical component (psilocybin) is "remarkably non-toxic to the body's organ systems", explaining that the risks are indirect: higher dosages are more likely to cause fear and may result in dangerous behavior.
One study found that the most desirable results may come from starting with very low doses first, and trying slightly higher doses over months. The researchers explain that the peak experiences occur at quantities that are only slightly lower than a sort of anxiety threshold. Although risks of experiencing fear and anxiety increased somewhat consistently along with dosage and overall quality of experience, at dosages exceeding the individual's threshold, there was suddenly greater increases in anxiety than before. In other words, after finding the optimum dose, there are diminishing returns
Diminishing returns
In economics, diminishing returns is the decrease in the marginal output of a production process as the amount of a single factor of production is increased, while the amounts of all other factors of production stay constant.The law of diminishing returns In economics, diminishing returns (also...
for using more (since risks of anxiety now increase at a greater rate).
Sensory
Noticeable changes to the audio, visual, and tactile senses may become apparent around thirty minutes to an hour after ingestion. These shifts in perception visually include enhancement and contrasting of colors, strange light phenomena (such as auras or "halos" around light sources), increased visual acuity, surfaces that seem to ripple, shimmer, or breathe; complex open and closed eye visuals of form constantForm constant
A form constant is one of several geometric patterns which are recurringly observed during hallucinations and altered states of consciousness.-History:...
s or images, objects that warp, morph, or change solid colors; a sense of melting into the environment, and trails behind moving objects
Afterimage
An afterimage or ghost image or image burn-in is an optical illusion that refers to an image continuing to appear in one's vision after the exposure to the original image has ceased...
. Sounds seem to be heard with increased clarity; music, for example, can often take on a profound sense of cadence and depth. Some users experience synesthesia
Synesthesia
Synesthesia , from the ancient Greek , "together," and , "sensation," is a neurologically based condition in which stimulation of one sensory or cognitive pathway leads to automatic, involuntary experiences in a second sensory or cognitive pathway...
, wherein they perceive, for example, a visualization of color upon hearing a particular sound.
Emotional
Psychedelic drug
A psychedelic substance is a psychoactive drug whose primary action is to alter cognition and perception. Psychedelics are part of a wider class of psychoactive drugs known as hallucinogens, a class that also includes related substances such as dissociatives and deliriants...
such as LSD, the experience, or "trip," is strongly dependent upon set and setting
Set and setting
Set and setting describes the context for psychoactive and particularly psychedelic drug experiences: one's mindset and the setting in which the user has the experience. This is especially relevant for psychedelic or hallucinogenic experiences...
. A negative environment could likely induce a bad trip
Bad trip
Bad trip is a disturbing experience sometimes associated with use of a psychedelic drug such as LSD, Salvinorin A, DXM, mescaline, psilocybin, DMT and sometimes even other drugs including cannabis, alcohol and MDMA....
, whereas a comfortable and familiar environment would allow for a pleasant experience. Many users find it preferable to ingest the mushrooms with friends, people they're familiar with, or people who are also 'tripping'.
Spiritual and well being
In 2006, the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
government funded a randomized and double-blinded study by Johns Hopkins University
Johns Hopkins University
The Johns Hopkins University, commonly referred to as Johns Hopkins, JHU, or simply Hopkins, is a private research university based in Baltimore, Maryland, United States...
which studied the spiritual effects of psilocybin
Psilocybin
Psilocybin is a naturally occurring psychedelic prodrug, with mind-altering effects similar to those of LSD and mescaline, after it is converted to psilocin. The effects can include altered thinking processes, perceptual distortions, an altered sense of time, and spiritual experiences, as well as...
in particular. That is, they did not use mushrooms specifically (in fact, each individual mushroom piece can vary wildly in psilocybin and psilocin content). The study involved 36 college-educated adults (average age of 46) who had never tried psilocybin nor had a history of drug use, and who had religious or spiritual interests. The participants were closely observed for eight-hour intervals in a laboratory while under the influence of psilocybin mushrooms.
One-third of the participants reported that the experience was the single most spiritually significant moment of their lives and more than two-thirds reported it was among the top five most spiritually significant experiences. Two months after the study, 79% of the participants reported increased well-being or satisfaction; friends, relatives, and associates confirmed this. They also reported anxiety and depression symptoms to be decreased or completely gone.
Despite highly controlled conditions to minimize adverse effects, 22% of subjects (8 of 36) had notable experiences of fear, some with paranoia. The authors, however, reported that all these instances were "readily managed with reassurance."
- See psilocybinPsilocybinPsilocybin is a naturally occurring psychedelic prodrug, with mind-altering effects similar to those of LSD and mescaline, after it is converted to psilocin. The effects can include altered thinking processes, perceptual distortions, an altered sense of time, and spiritual experiences, as well as...
for more details
As medicine
- For more health related information on the main psycho-active ingredient, see psilocybinPsilocybinPsilocybin is a naturally occurring psychedelic prodrug, with mind-altering effects similar to those of LSD and mescaline, after it is converted to psilocin. The effects can include altered thinking processes, perceptual distortions, an altered sense of time, and spiritual experiences, as well as...
Cluster headache
Cluster headache, nicknamed "suicide headache", is a neurological disease that involves, as its most prominent feature, an immense degree of pain in the head. Cluster headaches occur periodically: spontaneous remissions interrupt active periods of pain. The cause of the disease is currently unknown...
s, following numerous anecdotal reports of benefits. There are also several accounts of psilocybin mushrooms sending both obsessive-compulsive disorder
Obsessive-compulsive disorder
Obsessive–compulsive disorder is an anxiety disorder characterized by intrusive thoughts that produce uneasiness, apprehension, fear, or worry, by repetitive behaviors aimed at reducing the associated anxiety, or by a combination of such obsessions and compulsions...
s ("OCD") and OCD-related clinical depression
Clinical depression
Major depressive disorder is a mental disorder characterized by an all-encompassing low mood accompanied by low self-esteem, and by loss of interest or pleasure in normally enjoyable activities...
(both being widespread and debilitating mental health
Mental health
Mental health describes either a level of cognitive or emotional well-being or an absence of a mental disorder. From perspectives of the discipline of positive psychology or holism mental health may include an individual's ability to enjoy life and procure a balance between life activities and...
conditions) into complete remission immediately and for up to months at a time, compared to current medications which often have both limited efficacy and frequent undesirable side-effects. One such study states:
- "Developing drugs that are more effective and faster acting for the treatment of OCD is of utmost importance and until recently, little hope was in hand. A new potential avenue of treatment may exist. There are several reported cases concerning the beneficial effects of hallucinogenic drugs (psilocybin and LSDLSDLysergic acid diethylamide, abbreviated LSD or LSD-25, also known as lysergide and colloquially as acid, is a semisynthetic psychedelic drug of the ergoline family, well known for its psychological effects which can include altered thinking processes, closed and open eye visuals, synaesthesia, an...
), potent stimulators of 5-HT2A and 5-HT2C receptorReceptor (biochemistry)In biochemistry, a receptor is a molecule found on the surface of a cell, which receives specific chemical signals from neighbouring cells or the wider environment within an organism...
s, in patients with OCD (Brandrup and Vanggaard, 1977, Rapoport, 1987, Moreno and Delgado, 1997) and related disorders such as body dysmorphic disorderBody dysmorphic disorderBody Dysmorphic Disorder is a type of mental illness, a somatoform disorder, wherein the affected person is exclusively concerned with body image, manifested as excessive concern about and preoccupation with a perceived defect of his or her physical features...
(Hanes, 1996)."
- If it can be established that this class of drug can indeed lead to rapid and substantial reduction in OCD symptoms, then it opens the way for a variety of future studies with new drugs that might possibly have the anti-OCD but not the psychedelic effects. [...] Psilocybin, LSD, and mescaline are extremely potent agonistAgonistAn agonist is a chemical that binds to a receptor of a cell and triggers a response by that cell. Agonists often mimic the action of a naturally occurring substance...
s at 5-HT2A and 5-HT2C receptors and their binding potency to these receptors is correlated with their human potency as hallucinogens (Glennon et al., 1984). The acute improvement in symptoms described in the published case reports (Brandrup and Vanggaard, 1977, Rapoport, 1987, Moreno and Delgado, 1997) suggests that interactions with 5-HT2A and 5-HT2C receptors may be an essential component of anti-OCD drug action. The observations that administration of the non-selective 5-HT antagonistReceptor antagonistA receptor antagonist is a type of receptor ligand or drug that does not provoke a biological response itself upon binding to a receptor, but blocks or dampens agonist-mediated responses...
s metergolineMetergolineMetergoline is a psychoactive drug of the ergoline chemical class which acts as a ligand for various serotonin and dopamine receptors....
or ritanserinRitanserinRitanserin is a serotonin antagonist with possibilities for the treatment of many neurological disorders.When used together with typical antipsychotics in the treatment of schizophrenia is able to decrease negative symptoms and adds some "atypicality" as parkinsonism is slightly decreased.-...
exacerbate OCD symptoms further supports this view."
Dosage
Dosage of mushrooms containing psilocybin depends on the potency of the mushroom (the total psilocybin and psilocin content of the mushrooms), which varies significantly both between species and within the same species, but is typically around 0.5-2% of the dried weight of the mushroom. A typical dose of the rather common species, Psilocybe cubensisPsilocybe cubensis
Psilocybe cubensis is a species of psychedelic mushroom whose principal active compounds are psilocybin and psilocin. Commonly called Boomers, Cubes or Gold Caps, it belongs to the Strophariaceae family of fungi and was previously known as Stropharia cubensis.-Taxonomy and naming:The species was...
, is approximately 1 to 2.5 gram
Gram
The gram is a metric system unit of mass....
s, while about 2.5 to 5 grams dried mushroom material is considered a strong dose. Above 5 dried grams is often considered a heavy dose.
| Name | Psilocybin [%] | Psilocin [%] | Baeocystin [%] | Total [%] |
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Conocybe cyanopus Conocybe cyanopus is a member of the genus Conocybe which contains the medicinal compound psilocybin. It is formerly known as Pholiotina cyanopoda, Conocybe cyanopoda, and Galerula cyanopus.-Description:... |
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 Conocybe smithii Conocybe smithii is a rare member of the genus Conocybe which contains the hallucinogenic alkaloid psilocybin. It was formerly known as Galera cyanopes.-Description:... |
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 Gymnopilus purpuratus Gymnopilus purpuratus is mushroom which grows in clusters on dead wood, pig dung and wood chip mulch. It is widely distributed and has been recorded in Argentina, Australia, Chile, the UK and Germany... |
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Gymnopilus validipes Gymnopilus validipes is a widely distributed mushroom of North America and Europe. Gymnopilus validipes contains the hallucinogens psilocybin and psilocin. The mild taste of this mushroom stands in contrast to closely related bitter species... |
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| Psilocybe azurescens Psilocybe azurescens is a psychedelic mushroom whose main active compounds are psilocybin and psilocin. It is among the most potent of the tryptamine-bearing mushrooms, containing up to 1.8% psilocybin, 0.5% psilocin, and 0.4% baeocystin by dry weight, averaging to about 1.1% psilocybin and 0.15%... |
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 Psilocybe baeocystis Psilocybe baeocystis is a psilocybin mushroom of the Strophariaceae family, it contains the hallucinogenic compounds psilocybin, psilocin and baeocystin.... |
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| Psilocybe serbica Psilocybe serbica is a species of mushroom in the Strophariaceae family. The mushroom contains the compound psilocybin. It is closely related to Psilocybe cyanescens, although the latter has a strong farinaceous odor and taste and is not translucent-striate when moist. It was reported as new to... |
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Psilocybe cubensis Psilocybe cubensis is a species of psychedelic mushroom whose principal active compounds are psilocybin and psilocin. Commonly called Boomers, Cubes or Gold Caps, it belongs to the Strophariaceae family of fungi and was previously known as Stropharia cubensis.-Taxonomy and naming:The species was... |
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 Psilocybe cyanescens Psilocybe cyanescens is a species of potent psychedelic mushroom. The main compounds responsible for its psychedelic effects are psilocybin and psilocin. It belongs to the family Strophariaceae... |
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 Psilocybe cyanofibrillosa Psilocybe cyanofibrillosa also known as Rhododendron Psilocybe and Blue-Haired Psilocybe is a psilocybin mushroom of the Agaricales family having psilocybin and psilocin as main active compounds... |
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| Psilocybe hoogshagenii Psilocybe hoogshagenii is a species of mushroom in the Strophariaceae family. The mushroom contains the medicinal compound psilocybin.... |
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| Psilocybe semilanceata Psilocybe semilanceata, commonly known as the liberty cap, is a psychedelic mushroom that contains the psychoactive compounds psilocybin and baeocystin. Of the world's psychoactive mushrooms, it is the most common in nature, and one of the most potent... |
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 Psilocybe stuntzii Psilocybe stuntzii, also known as Stuntz's Blue legs and Blue Ringers it is a psilocybin mushroom of the Strophariaceae family, having psilocybin andpsilocin as main active compounds.... |
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 Psilocybe tampanensis Psilocybe tampanensis is a very rare psychedelic mushroom whose only known natural specimen was collected in the wild by Steven Pollock, near Tampa, Florida in 1977. All spores and cultivations of this species nowadays are originated from this only specimen... |
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 Psilocybe weilii Psilocybe weilii is a psilocybin mushroom having psilocybin and/or psilocin as main active compounds. Originally mistaken for Psilocybe caerulescens var... |
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The concentration of active psilocybin mushroom compounds varies not only from species to species, but also from mushroom to mushroom inside a given species, subspecies or variety. The same holds true even for different parts of the same mushroom. In the species Psilocybe samuiensis
Psilocybe samuiensis
Psilocybe samuiensis is a psychedelic mushroom, which has psilocybin and psilocin as main active compounds. It was placed in the Section Mexicanae of genus Psilocybe by Gastón Guzmán due to its rhomboid-shaped spores...
Guzmán, Bandala and Allen, the dried cap of the mushroom contains the most psilocybin at about 0.23%–0.90%. The mycelia contain about 0.24%–0.32%.
Legality
Psilocybin and psilocin are listed as Schedule I drugs under the United Nations 1971 Convention on Psychotropic SubstancesConvention on Psychotropic Substances
The Convention on Psychotropic Substances of 1971 is a United Nations treaty designed to control psychoactive drugs such as amphetamines, barbiturates, benzodiazepines, and psychedelics signed at Vienna on February 21, 1971...
. Schedule I drugs are deemed to have a high potential for abuse and are not recognized for medical use. However, psilocybin mushrooms are not covered by UN drug treaties.
From a letter, dated Sept 13, 2001, from Herbert Schaepe, Secretary of the UN International Narcotics Control Board
International Narcotics Control Board
The International Narcotics Control Board is the independent and quasi-judicial control organ for the implementation of the United Nations drug conventions...
, to the Dutch Ministry of Health:
As you are aware, mushrooms containing the above substances are collected and used for their hallucinogenic effects. As a matter of international law, no plants (natural material) containing psilocine and psilocybin are at present controlled under the Convention on Psychotropic Substances of 1971. Consequently, preparations made of these plants are not under international control and, therefore, not subject of the articles of the 1971 Convention. It should be noted, however, that criminal cases are decided with reference to domestic law, which may otherwise provide for controls over mushrooms containing psilocine and psilocybin. As the Board can only speak as to the contours of the international drug conventions, I am unable to provide an opinion on the litigation in question.
Psilocybin mushrooms are regulated or prohibited in many countries, often carrying severe legal penalties (for example, the U.S. Psychotropic Substances Act
Psychotropic Substances Act (United States)
The Psychotropic Substances Act of 1978 amended the Controlled Substances Act to ensure compliance with the Convention on Psychotropic Substances...
, the UK Misuse of Drugs Act 1971
Misuse of Drugs Act 1971
The Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 is an Act of Parliament which represents UK action in line with treaty commitments under the Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs, the Convention on Psychotropic Substances, and the United Nations Convention Against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic...
and Drugs Act 2005, and the Canadian Controlled Drugs and Substances Act
Controlled Drugs and Substances Act
The Controlled Drugs and Substances Act is Canada's federal drug control statute. Passed in 1996 by the Chrétien government, it repeals the Narcotic Control Act and Parts III and IV of the Food and Drug Act and establishes eight Schedules of controlled substances and two Classes of precursors...
).
Magic mushrooms in their fresh form still remain legal in some countries including Spain, Austria, and Canada. On November 29, 2008, The Netherlands announced it would ban the cultivation and use of psilocybin-containing fungi beginning December 1, 2008. The UK ban on fresh mushrooms (dried ones were illegal as they were considered a psilocybin-containing preparation) introduced in 2005 came under much criticism, but was rushed through at the end of the 2001-2005 Parliament; until then magic mushrooms had been sold in the UK.
New Mexico appeals court ruled on June 14, 2005, that growing psilocybin mushrooms for personal consumption could not be considered "manufacturing a controlled substance" under state law. However it still remains illegal under federal law.
See also
External links
- The Vaults of Erowid - Psilocybin Mushrooms
- Jeremy Bigwood: Scientific Publications (archived at Wayback Machine)
- International Legal Status of Psilocybin Mushrooms Ananda Schouten, ErowidErowidErowid, also called The Vaults of Erowid, is an online library of information about psychoactive plants and chemicals and other topics on altered states of consciousness such as meditation and lucid dreaming. It provides information about legal and illegal substances, including their desired and...
, 2004 - UN's INCB Psilocybin Mushroom Policy Herbert Schaepe, 2001
- Hallucinogenic mushrooms EMCDDA, Lisbon, June 2006
- Hallucinogenic mushrooms: the challenge of responding to naturally occurring substances in an electronic age EMCDDA, Drugs in Focus 15
- Psilocybes in Medicine from the "International Journal of Psychoactive Mushrooms" FMRC