Drugs, Society & Human
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Drugs, Society & Human BghaViOf sevenreenthEdition Carl L. Hart Co/umbio University Charles Ksir University of Wyoming Mc Graw Hilt Education When you hove finished this chaptel you shoulcl be oble to: . Explain why plants with psychoactive effects have been used in religious practices all over the world. Recognize several examples of indole and catechol psychedelics. Describe the relationship of LSD to the ergot fungus. Discuss the early research and evidence on LSD for use in interrogation and in psychotherapy. Understand what is meant by,,hallucinogen persisting Source: Drug Enforcement Administration perception disorder." . Describe the major active ingredient and some history of use From the soft, quiet beauty of the of psilocybe, morning glories, ayahuasca, peyote, San pedro sacred Psiloc1,be mushroom to the cactus, Amonito, and Solvio divinorum, angry, mottled appearance of the . Understand toxic Anwnita, from the mountains the chemical relationship among DOM, MDA, and MDMA. of Mexico to the streets of Anytown, USA, from before history to the . Compare and contrast PCP effects with those of LSD. 2lst centufy, humans have searched Explain how anticholinergic psychedelics act in for the perfect aphrodisiac, spiritual the brain, experiences, and other worlds. The Compare stories about medieval witches using belladonna to plants have been there to help; contemporary stories about people using marijuana, LSD, or plants have evolved to produce cocaine, chemicals that alter the biochemis- try of animals. if they make us feel sick, we are unlikely to eat them again, and if they kill us, we are certainly not going Animism and Religion to eat them again. But humans long ago learned to "tame" some of these plants, to use them in just the Animism, the belief that animals, plants, rocks, right ways and in just the right amounts to alter streams, and so on derive their special characteris- perceptions and emotions without too many tics from a spirit contained within the object, is a unpleasant consequences. common theme in most of the world's religions. 309 3lO Section Six Restricted Drugs unbiased term that Plants that are able to alter our perception of the Is there a descriptive and the drugs and then to world and of ourselves fit right into such a view. If will allow us to categorize prejudice? Probably the plant contains a spirit, then eating the plant examine their effects without however, we have transfers that spirit to the person who eats it, and not. As a matter of convention, drugs as psychedelics the spirit of the plant can speak to the consumer, chosen to refer to this class of make her feel the plant's joy or provide her with in this chapter. of these drugs psy- special powers or insights. Although we will call all differences among In early hunter-gatherer societies, certain indi- chedelics, there are important according to their viduals became specialists in the ways of these them. They can be classified plants, learning when to halvest them and how chemical structures, their known pharmacological awareness occurs much to use under what circumstances. These tra- properties, how much loss of they can ditions were passed down from one generation to under their influence, and how dangerous review are the classical another, and colorful stories were used to teach the be. The first types we will percep- principles to apprentices. Our modern term for psychedelics: They are capable of altering in com- these individuals is shaman because of their tions while allowing the person to remain The individual knowledge of drug-containing plants. But because munication with the present world. these drugs will often be they also were the experts on obtaining power from under the influence of and the real the spirit world, their function in hunter-gatherer aware of both the "fantasy" world avidly about societies had as much to do with the origins of reli- world at the same time, might talk and will be able to gion as with the origins of modern medicine' These what is being experienced, these drugs plants and their psychoactive effects were probably remember much of it later. Many of without much important reasons for the development of spiritual can produce psychedelic effects is, there is rela- and religious traditions and folklore in many socie- acute physiological toxicity-that an overdose of ties all over the world.l tively little danger of dying from LSD, psilocybin, or mescaline. The two major classes of psychedelics, the indoles and catechols Terminology and TYPes are grouped according to their chemical There has been some controversy about what to structures. call this group of drugs. Because the drugs are lndoles capable of producing hallucinations and some sero- altered sense ofreality, a state that could be called The basic structure of the neurotransmitter psychotic, they have been referred to as psychoto- tonin is referred to as an indole nucleus. Figure 14' 1 mimetic drugs. This term implies that the illustrates that the psychedelics LSD and psilocybin drugs produce dangerous effects and a form of also contain this structure. For that reason and the mental disorder, which is also a controversial fact that some other chemicals with this structure one conclusion. have similar psychedelic effects, we refer to More recently, proponents have popularized group ofpsychedelics as the indoles. newerterms, such as entheogen and entactogen, to (LSD) most potent describe these substances. For example, entheogen d-Lysergic Acid Diethylamide The these is used to describe substances (e.g., sacred mush- of the psychedelics, and the one that brought found rooms) that are thought to create spiritual or reli- drugs into the public eye in the 1960s, is not gious experiences, whereas entactogen, meaning in nature. Although there are naturally occurring acid "to produce a touching within," is used to describe compounds that lesemble the indole d-lysergic as psychedelics substances, such as MDMA, that are said to enhance diethylamide (LSD), their identity LSD. It feelings of empathy. was not known until after the discovery of Chapter r4 Psychedelics 3tl Psychedelics: Back in Mainstream Medical Research? A few years.ago, a headline in lime magazine read appropriate medical supervision was not included in "LSD May Help Treat Alcoholism." Other mainstream some studies. Together, these concerns led policy publications have printed similar enthusiastic pieces. makers to impose greater restrictions on access to The reason for the resurgent optimism about LSD psychedelics, and effectively ended their role in therapy are the findings of a 2c12 study published in research and medical treatment. t t h e Jo urno 1 P o/ sy chphar maco/ogy. Resea rc h e rs ln the last decade or so, however, a new gener- Norway from conducted a retrospective analysis of ation of researchers has been investigating the studies published in the late r96os and early r97os in potential therapeutic benefits of psychedelics. For order to assess the utility of LSD as a treatment for example, studies have shown that 3,4-methylenedi- excessive drinking. Data from six randomized, oxymethamphetamine (MDMA) decreases symp- double-blind trials involving 536 participants were toms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD),3 evaluated. The researchers found that a single dose ayahuasca reduces symptoms of depression,a and LSD of decreased problem drinking to a greater psilocybin facilitates tobacco smoking cessation5 (ephedrine, extent than a control drug amphetamine, and decreases depression and anxiety in patients or placebo). These findings add to a growing number with life-threatening cancer. 6 of studies showing beneficial effects of psychedelics Researchers in this area today emphasize that in the treatment psychiatric of conditions, following psychedelic therapies should be thought of as adjuncts, nearly four decades of limited interest in these or add-ons, to psychotherapies and not stand-alone compounds for medical purposes. treatments. The idea that this class of drugs comprised ln the t95os and t96os, psychedelics were pro- "magic bullets" probably contributed to the backlash moted physicians by as treatments for several medical against their use in research and medicine in the t96os. conditions ranging from anxiety to schizophrenia. ln an effort to move psychedelics back into mainstream Excitement about the potential medical benefits of medical research, researchers are avoiding mistakes this class of drug abruptly ended, as nonmedical use of the past by remaining cautious about the role of became more widespread and associated problems psychedelics in medicine and stressing the importance increased. ln addition, some researcher investigating of proper education for professionals using these drugs the effects of psychedelics began using less than rig- in research and treatment. orous methodology in their studies, which increased the likelihood of adverse drug effects. For example, Box icon credit: @Glow lnoges RF was originally synthesized from ergot alkaloids animism: the belief that objects attain certain charac- extracted from the ergot fungw Claviceps purpurea. teristics because of spirits. This mold occasionally grows on grain, especially shaman: a person having access to, and influence in, rye, and eating infected grain results in an illness the world of spirits, especially among certain tribal soci- called ergotism, which can cause headaches, eties. Also known as medicine men/women. psychotomimetic (sy vomiting, diarrhea, and gangrene ofthe fingers and cot o mim et lck): mimicking toes. psychosis. entheogen (en thee o gen): generating the divine within. entactogen (en gen): LSD Discovery ond Eorly Reseorch Dr. Albert tac to generating empathy and openness. Hofmann first synthesized LSD in 1938 when he indole (in dole): a particular chemical structure found was working as a scientist at Sandoz Laboratories in serotonin and LSD. in Basel, Switzerland. It was not until 1943, ergotism: a condition caused by fungal contamination however, that LSD entered the world of of grains resulting in headache, vomiting, diarrhea, and psychopharmacology, when Hofmann recorded his gangrene ofthe fingers and toes.