One of the main issues preventing ayahuasca and other psychedelics from achieving mainstream acceptance is the current political position it has found itself in. DMT is considered a Schedule I drug under the International Convention on Psychotropic Substances, defined as having no currently accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse. Schedule I drugs are considered the most dangerous drugs of all the drug schedules, with potentially severe psychological or physical dependence. Because of this classification, there has been a severe lack of actual, physical, scientific knowledge about these medicines. We know it does not kill or otherwise harm the indigenous cultures where it’s presence is the foundation of a religion, but Western culture has yet to understand why, or more importantly, what that could mean for us. Even less studied than its potential harms are its effects. I am compelled to believe that the reason for this lack of awareness, this gaping hole in our knowledge, is both the fuel and the consequence of perpetuating the idea that psychedelics are comparable to other Schedule I drugs such as methamphetamines. We know both have a powerful effect on the body, but that is where the comparison stops. Classifying psychedelics in the same realm as the more dangerous and harmful drugs severely limits their development and potential for therapeutic use. Only recently have scientists begun to navigate through the political red tape and truly quantify the subjective experiences, helping to grow and define the basis of our knowledge in this field. Knowledge and awareness are the backbones of policy change, and a lack of either grinds progress to a halt. Policy change in this case means the ability to conduct scientific research, the path to understanding the breadth and depth of psychedelics more fully, and the freedom of choice to consume without consequence. We have the power to use this medicine for the greater good, but we have to understand it first. So, let’s start with that.

In recent years, there has been an increase in scientific studies conducted internationally on the long-term effects among ritual users of psychedelics. Scientists have begun to scratch the surface in mapping the various facets of these drugs. A recent review out of Barcelona, Spain has looked at the current field of scientific literature devoted to ayahuasca in particular [1]. In the last 20 years, this Amazonian medicine has attracted the international attention of biomedical, neurological, and psychological scientists interested in assessing the long term consequences and addressing the concerns of addiction and psychopathy raised by the general public and policy makers.

One of the first pioneering studies in this field was conducted in the early 1990’s by Callaway, Grob, McKenna, and colleagues, which aimed to assess the physiological effects of ayahuasca in regular users [2]. They studied 15 members of an ayahuasca church in Brazil known as the União do Vegetal (Union of the Plant). The authors characterized the effects of an ayahuasca-induced experience using the Hallucinogen Rating Scale (HRS) originally developed by Strassman [3], in which the experience is rated in the following six spheres:

Somaesthesia , reflecting sensory perception of bodily experiences like pain, touch, and position of limbs;

, reflecting sensory perception of bodily experiences like pain, touch, and position of limbs; Affect , sensitive to emotional and affective responses;

, sensitive to emotional and affective responses; Volition , indicating the volunteer’s degree of incapacitation;

, indicating the volunteer’s degree of incapacitation; Cognition , describing modifications in thought processes or content;

, describing modifications in thought processes or content; Perception , measuring visual, auditory, gustatory, and olfactory experiences;

, measuring visual, auditory, gustatory, and olfactory experiences; Intensity, which reflects the strength of the overall experience.

The results of this study were two-fold: using this rating scale, scientists were able to firmly conclude that ayahuasca does indeed induce psychedelic effects. They backed up these findings with proof that DMT and its sister alkaloids, harmine, harmaline and tetrahydroharmine, were present in the bloodstream. This foundational study set a baseline against which future studies would measure ayahuasca experience. Over the next decade, research ramped up from affirming that a psychedelic experience was induced to characterizing the neuropharmacological profile of that experience. Larger groups were studied, methods were perfected to precisely determine amounts of ayahuasca alkaloids in blood, and clinical trials were conducted to characterize various cardiovascular and psychophysiological effects [4]. In a nutshell, the findings are as follows:

Ayahuasca is a combination of two plants, the Banisteriopsis caapi vine, or ayahuasca vine, and any plant from the genus Psychotria, which contains DMT. DMT is typically not ingestible, as it is rapidly broken down by monoamine oxidase (MAO) enzymes in the digestive tract. Conveniently, the ayahuasca vine, which is combined in a brew with a DMT-containing Psychotria plant, contains “harmala alkaloids,” which inhibit these MAO enzymes that would normally break down DMT. This allows the DMT to pass through the digestive system without being broken down, enter the blood circulation and, ultimately, cross the blood-brain barrier into the central nervous system.

Consequently, ayahuasca can produce significant effects on the body and mind. Once it reaches the brain, it binds to the 5-HT 2A/2C receptors, one of the main types of serotonin receptors. This is a similar effect to most psychedelics, and is the main driver behind ayahuasca’s powerful effects on mood, memory, and increased brain activity [8]. EEG studies, measuring electrical activity in the brain, found a decrease in alpha waves and an increase in beta waves, which is the same brain pattern that occurs when transitioning from closed eyes to open, and is strongly correlated with visual attention [9]. Essentially, this means that your brain can’t distinguish between the visions induced by ayahuasca, and actual vision. You don’t perceive such visions as hallucinations; subjectively, it is the same effect as if it’s real. To further study the effects on the brain, scientists used neuroimaging techniques to determine the specific areas that are activated by ayahuasca intake. In particular, and in accordance with the EEG studies, ayahuasca activates the same area of the brain as natural vision, as well as imagination, working memory and the processing of information [6]. Ayahuasca has shown to be involved in the activation of an extensive network generally involved with vision, memory, and intention [6]. It also increases diastolic blood pressure, but not heart rate, although it’s mechanism of action is unclear [5]. By boosting the intensity of recalled images to the same level of natural image, ayahuasca has proven to lend a status of reality to inner experiences.

A biomedical study of members of the Uñiao do Vegetal indicated that ayahuasca may have therapeutic applications for the treatment of alcoholism, substance abuse, and possibly other disorders. Clinical studies conducted in Spain have demonstrated that ayahuasca can be used safely in normal healthy adults, but have done little to clarify its potential therapeutic uses [7].

While we have made progress in the characterization of ayahuasca and its physiological effects on the body, it is crucial that we go one step further in this field, and use this knowledge to better understand its medicinal and therapeutic value. And while this post might not lead to the next scientific discovery about ayahuasca or its family of medicines, a strong and informed public fortified by scientific fact is a step in the right direction. Ayahuasca and other psychedelics should not be classified as Schedule I drugs, as there is no evidence that ayahuasca meets the criteria for this drug class, and all studies thus far have suggested just the opposite. Whether or not you are able to have personal life-changing experiences from this medicine, being a voice for policy change will determine the course of a global shift in awareness, understanding, and public sentiment towards psychedelics.

References