Psychedelics are poised to become treatments for mental illness and addiction but a renewed war on drugs could scupper this promise, says Kevin Franciotti

1960s LSD research fell foul of the “war on drugs” AP Photo

Research into psychedelic drugs has been undergoing a renaissance. In the past decade, preliminary trials with the likes of LSD have shown their promise as tools for understanding and treating mental illness.

Later this year, those testing psilocybin and MDMA are expected to recruit hundreds of people for the final phase of human research before their possible approval as medicines.

Yet more evidence of medical potential comes from studying people who used psychedelics outside of research settings. They have lower rates of depression and other mood disorders, psychoses …