Weekly Psychedelic Links - July 2022

7.1.22

Cannabis

• Fentanyl-laced marijuana is a myth. It’s time to end the hype (Leafly)

• Medical Weed Cards No Longer Required in Virginia Starting July 1 (High Times)

• Hemp, CBD get permanent legal status in NC after 11th-hour rescue (MSN.com)

• Scientists find THC in over 60% of CBD products they tested — and that may be a huge problem (ZME Science)

• UN Report Dramatizes Uptick in Global Cannabis Use (High Times)

• Louisiana Governor Signs Bill Providing Medical Marijuana Workplace Protections For State Employees (Marijuana Moment)

• Maryland Court: Cops Can Stop, Question Someone Who Smells of Pot (High Times)

• Nevada Cannabis Consumption Lounges Could Go Live By End Of 2022 (Marijuana Moment)

• Edibles, beverages infused with cannabis ingredient THC become legal Friday in Minnesota (Star Tribune)

• Inside The Process To Legalize Recreational Cannabis In Germany (Forbes)

• California Bill to Require Cannabis Warnings About Mental Disorder Risks Advances (High Times)

• Pennsylvania Lawmakers Advance Medical Marijuana DUI Protections And Cannabis Banking Reform Bills (Marijuana Moment)

• Texas Supreme Court Bans Smokable Hemp Production, Sales (High Times)

• Montana Lawsuit Challenges Marijuana Ban In State’s Third-Largest City (Marijuana Moment)

• House Panel Approves Amendment to Protect State Legal Cannabis Programs (High Times)

• Feds Fund Development Of Hemp-Based, 3D-Printed Materials To Build Affordable Housing (Marijuana Moment)

• New Vermont Guidance Looks to Eliminate Plastic Waste From State’s Cannabis Industry (High Times)

• Cannabis users are at greater risk for emergency and inpatient care: study (Fox News)

Magic Mushrooms

• These Mormons Have Found a New Faith — in Magic Mushrooms (Rolling Stone)

• New Jersey Senate President Files Psilocybin Legalization Bill That Includes Home Grow Option, Unlike Current Marijuana Law (Marijuana Moment)

• Tryp Therapeutics Strengthens IP Portfolio with Provisional Patent Application for Binge Eating Disorder Treatment (Psychedelic Alpha)

• Digging Up Druggable Targets: Psilocybin Efficacy in a Model of OCD (Psychedelic Science Review)

MDMA

• First-of-its-kind MDMA group therapy trial set to commence (New Atlas)

• Over One Hundred Years of MDMA Research (Drug Science)

Ayahuasca

• How the Shipibo Came to Be the Most Common Group Serving Ayahuasca to Foreigners (DoubleBlind)

Peyote

• Decriminalize Nature Targets Peyote: Drug Reform or Settler Colonialism? (Chacruna)

• Big business could wipe out Mexico’s sacred psychedelic peyote cactus (openDemocracy)

Novel Psychoactive Substances

• How Did A Minnesota Honor Roll Student Die As Her Parents Were Sleeping Upstairs? (Oxygen)

Synthetic Cannabinoids

• A Loophole in Japan’s Weed Laws Is Getting Tens of Thousands High (VICE)

Miscellaneous

• Colorado Activists Turn In Signatures To Put Psychedelics Legalization And Therapeutic Psilocybin Program On Ballot (Marijuana Moment)

• War on drugs prolonged Colombia’s decades-long civil war, landmark report finds (The Guardian)

• Is there a future for psychedelic treatment in Saudi Arabia? (Arab News)

• Do Bad Psychedelic Patents Matter? (Lucid News)

• 4 Recommendations for Disability Inclusion in Psychedelic Therapy Research (Psychiatric Times)

7.8.22

Cannabis

• WNBA Star Brittney Griner Pleads Guilty To Cannabis Charge As Russia Calls Out U.S. Hypocrisy In Maintaining Criminalization (Marijuana Moment)

• Make no mistake, marijuana edibles are legal now in Minnesota (Leafly)

• Washington, D.C. Mayor Signs Medical Cannabis Self-Certification Bill (High Times)

• Pennsylvania Bill Gives Medical Cannabis Patients DUI Protection (High Times)

• Oklahoma: Advocates Turn in Signatures to Place Adult-Use Legalization Measure on November Ballot (NORML)

• Study Shows Flower Still Reigns Supreme in U.S., Canada as Consumer Favorite (High Times)

• Arkansas Activists Set To Turn In Double The Signatures Needed To Put Marijuana Legalization On Ballot (Marijuana Moment)

• Nebraska Medical Marijuana Activists Turn In Ballot Signatures After Campaign Suffers Legal Setback (Marijuana Moment)

• Albania Prompted to Implement Medical Cannabis Reform After U.N. Criticism (High Times)

• U.S. Army Wants To Make Sniper Uniforms Out Of Hemp (Marijuana Moment)

LSD

• A man whose daily headaches felt like an ice pick in his eyes says he tried 12 treatments but only found relief after taking LSD (Insider)

Magic Mushrooms

• New Study Shows Mood, Mental Health Improved by Microdosing Psilocybin (High Times)

• Indiana Nurse Faces Ten Years in Prison for Microdosing Psilocybin Mushrooms (Psychedelic Spotlight)

• Two Cancer Patients Battle to Make Psilocybin Accessible for Palliative Care (Scientific American)

• Rural Oregon counties are lining up against psilocybin launch (OPB)

MDMA

• Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Pushes for Psychedelic Reform in Congress (DoubleBlind)

• GOP Congressman’s Amendment Would Direct Military To Study Psilocybin And MDMA Benefits For Service Members (Marijuana Moment)

DMT

• Algernon Pharmaceuticals Provides Update on Its Phase 1 DMT Stroke Study (Psychedelic Alpha)

Iboga

• ‘To Heal and to Care for’: Protecting Iboga and Indigenous Voices in the Face of Corporatisation (Volteface)

Novel Psychoactive Substances

• DEA Announces Hearing On Proposed Ban Of Five Psychedelic Compounds Following Significant Pushback (Marijuana Moment)

• Mindset Pharma Receives Allowance for Patent Application Covering its Short-Duration Novel Psychedelic Medications for The Treatment of Central Nervous System Disorders (Psychedelic Alpha)

Ketamine

• PharmaTher Announces Positive Results from Study For Ketamine Microneedle Patch (Psychedelic Alpha)

Miscellaneous

• The Never-Ending Psychedelic Trip of Michael Pollan (Rolling Stone)

• Journey Colab scores $12M to move psychedelics-based addiction treatment into clinic (Fierce Biotech)

• User perceptions of the benefits and harms of hallucinogenic drug use: A web-based questionnaire study (Drug Science)

• Tripping the Reward Circuit: Psychedelics for Substance Use Disorders (Psychedelic Science Review)

• Psychedelics Give a Glimpse of Enlightenment (Psychology Today)

7.15.22

Cannabis

• Feds Must Defend Historical Rationale Of Banning Guns For Medical Marijuana Patients, Revised Lawsuit Argues After SCOTUS Ruling (Marijuana Moment)

• ‘Green way of life’: Thailand sees cannabis boom after law change (Al Jazeera)

• Washington DC just legalized weed for all adults—but it’s locals only (Leafly)

• Oklahoma, North Dakota, Arkansas, and Nebraska submit signatures to put cannabis on November ballot (Leafly)

• Study Shows Decrease in Heavy Truck Crash Rates Since Cannabis Legalization (High Times)

• NYPD Will Keep Testing Officers For Marijuana, Reversing Course Hours After Announcing Policy Change Mandated By City (Marijuana Moment)

• Cannabis Laws in France Have Disproportionately Affected Muslims (High Times)

• New York Firefighters Won’t Be Tested For Marijuana, Department Says Following NYPD Leak (Marijuana Moment)

• Argentine Supreme Court Endorses Medical Cannabis Home Grow (High Times)

• Pennsylvania Governor Signs Marijuana Banking And Insurance Reform Bill Into Law (Marijuana Moment)

• Portland Weed Demand Hits Three-Year Low (High Times)

• Pennsylvania Police Arrested Over 13,000 People for Marijuana Possession in 2021 (NORML)

• The Fight for Medical Cannabis in Indonesia (High Times)

• Weed, Like Change, Nourishes The Soil To Regenerate The Cannabis Industry (Forbes)

LSD

• Why David Bowie wasn’t a fan of LSD (Far Out)

Magic Mushrooms

• DEA May Find Itself In Federal Court Again Over Refusal To Provide Psilocybin Access To Terminally Ill Patients (Marijuana Moment)

• Oregon therapeutic psilocybin program sparks some confusion (OPB)

MDMA

• World's first ecstasy 'shop' set to trial in the Netherlands (Mixmag)

• Luxury Champagne Recalled Again Over Ecstacy Contamination (Newsweek)

• MDMA: Rolling from Counterculture to the Clinic Counter (Psychedelic Science Review)

Ayahuasca

• Study suggests ayahuasca users tend to eat healthier, get more exercise, and experience physical and mental health benefits (PsyPost)

Ketamine

• PharmaTher Announces Notice of Allowance for U.S. Patent Covering Ketamine for the Potential Treatment of Parkinson’s Disease and Motor Disorders (Psychedelic Alpha)

Miscellaneous

• Ann Shulgin, Forerunner of Today's Psychedelic Re-Emergence, Dies at 91 (Transform Press)

• House Approves Marijuana And Psychedelics Amendments As Part Of Must-Pass Defense Bill (Marijuana Moment)

• What Ethnographers Have Learned from People Who Use Drugs (Undark)

• Inside the Chemistry Lab Where the MDMA Godfather Synthesized Novel Psychedelics (DoubleBlind)

• The Tory Leadership Candidates on Drugs (Volteface)

• Filament Health Issued Third Patent By United States Patent and Trademark Office (Psychedelic Alpha)

• Doctors Urge Access to Psychedelic Therapies in New Mexico (TIME)

• Can Psychedelics Treat Inflammation and Eye Disease? Eleusis Thinks So. (Lucid News)

• Villain Or Victim? Understanding The Role of Women In The Latin American Drug Trade (TalkingDrugs)

• San Francisco’s New DA Vows to Ramp Up City’s Drug War (Filter)

• The Battle for Psychedelic Patents (Psychedelic Spotlight)

• How To Become a Psychedelic Therapist (DoubleBlind)

• 5 Countries Where Psychedelics are Legal (Psychedelic Spotlight)

7.22.22

Cannabis

• Senate Leadership Introduces Legislation to End Federal Marijuana Prohibition (NORML)

• District of Columbia: Mayor Signs Legislation Prohibiting Most Employers from Discriminating Against Cannabis Consumers (NORML)

• Legal cannabis is producing more plastic waste than pot (Leafly)

• Colorado Company To Research Cannabis As A Treatment For Parkinson’s Disease (Forbes)

• Biden Says He’s ‘Working On’ Bill To Release Cannabis Inmates (High Times)

• Germany, Luxembourg, Malta And The Netherlands Discuss Marijuana Legalization At Historic Joint Meeting (Marijuana Moment)

• Colorado Springs Recreational Cannabis Initiative Qualifies for November Ballot (High Times)

• Minnesota Is Home To America's First Cannabis Disc Golf Course (MIX 108)

• House Passes Bill Permitting Weed Ads on TV and Radio (High Times)

• Colorado's New Lead Marijuana Monitor Treks Through Heavy Issues (Westword)

• Cannabis Telemedicine Launches in Montana (High Times)

• Montana Marijuana Businesses Face Seemingly Endless Cycle Of Local Votes On Allowing Them To Operate (Marijuana Moment)

• People Busted for Weed in the U.K. Could Lose Passports Under Proposed Rules (High Times)

• Missouri Marijuana Legalization Measure In Danger Of Not Qualifying For Ballot (Marijuana Moment)

• Denver officials want to save struggling cannabis delivery businesses (The Denver Post)

• Study Finds Australians Support Cannabis Use Over Smoking Tobacco (High Times)

• House Will Not Vote On Marijuana Amendments For Veterans And Public Housing Residents After Committee Snag (Marijuana Moment)

• Marijuana use is higher among US states that have legalized recreational cannabis use (News-Medical)

LSD

• The Doors of Expression: LSD Alters Epigenetics and Protein Induction (Psychedelic Science Review)

• Science Feature: MindMed’s LSD Trial for ADHD (Microdose)

• Watch John Lennon explain that 'Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds' was not about LSD (Far Out)

Magic Mushrooms

• The Sloppy Science of Psilocybin Microdosing Surveys (Psychedelic Spotlight)

• A single dose of psilocybin has long-lasting antidepressant-like effects in fruit flies (PsyPost)

• Restrictions on Psilocybin ‘Magic Mushrooms’ Are Easing as Research Ramps Up (Scientific American)

MDMA

• Patient safety issues halt trial for MDMA-assisted psychotherapy during Health Canada review (CBC)

• 'Corrective' measures ordered, but Health Canada says 2nd MDMA trial can continue (CBC)

DMT

• Teenager Used LSD And DMT To Help Overcome Trauma, Case Report Says (IFLScience)

Ayahuasca

• Churches sue to use hallucinogenic tea in religious practice (UPI)

• The Global Ayahuasca Boom: What About the Conservation of the Ayahuasca Vine? (Chacruna)

5-MeO-DMT

• The Story Behind a 1984 Hallucinogenic Pamphlet From Denton Is Just as Trippy as Its Subject (Dallas Observer)

Novel Psychoactive Substances

• Mydecine Files Full Patent Application Covering MYCO-006 Family of Novel Short-Acting MDMA Analogs (Psychedelic Alpha)

Synthetic Cannabinoids

• Weed vapes probably sending a toxic gas to your lungs, study finds (Salon)

• Cannabis getting stronger with synthetic versions added leading to psychosis, report warns (Independent.ie)

Ketamine

• Largest-ever clinical study of ketamine therapy shows that at-home model can be a safe, effective treatment for anxiety and depression; 62% fewer patients report suicidal ideation after four sessions (PR Newswire)

• Ketamine Beneficial For Treating Neonatal, And Pediatric Epilepsy: Study (Medical Dialogues)

Miscellaneous

• The Long, Strange Relationship Between Psychedelics and Telepathy (VICE)

• DEA Sued Over ‘Unlawful’ Delays On Psychedelic And Marijuana Public Records Requests Through FOIA (Marijuana Moment)

• Colorado Psychedelics Legalization Measure Qualifies for November Ballot (DoubleBlind)

• Keeping the Hippie Dream Alive (The New York Times)

• Accessibility Is Key for the Psychedelic Revolution (Pharmacy Times)

• Podcast aims to raise awareness about future of psychedelic treatments (CBC)

• Skip the trip – does the world need non-hallucinogenic psychedelics? (leafie)

• New Regulations for Psychedelics? Here's What Investors Need to Know (The Motley Fool)

7.29.22

Cannabis

• Weedmaps again advertising illegal marijuana retailers and products, complaints allege (Marijuana Business Daily)

• Singapore Executes Man for Cannabis Trafficking (High Times)

• House Passes Bipartisan Marijuana Research Bill, With Senate Expected To Send It To President Soon (Marijuana Moment)

• Zimbabwe OKs First Medicinal Cannabis Sales (High Times)

• Secret Australian marijuana facility exposes location after turning sky pink (The Washington Post)

• Biden Administration Proposes Prisoner Swap To Free Brittney Griner (High Times)

• Over 850 Doctors in Thailand Protest Pot Legalization (High Times)

• Senator Files Bill To Allow Marijuana Advertising On TV And Radio In Legal States (Marijuana Moment)

• The 'World's Biggest Cannabis Scam' Is Totally Unravelling (VICE)

• Bronx Cannabis Hub Fosters Opportunity in Communities Hit Hard by Arrests (Filter)

• Cannabis Users Less Likely to Face Complications After Spinal Fusion Surgery (High Times)

• 15 State Attorneys General File Brief Opposing Lawsuit To Help Put Medical Marijuana On Nebraska Ballot (Marijuana Moment)

• Thai businesses cash in on cannabis, from milk tea to toothpaste (Reuters)

• Missouri Marijuana Legalization Initiative Short Of Signatures Needed For Ballot In County Reviews (Marijuana Moment)

• New Hampshire stands alone in New England as only state without legal marijuana (WMUR)

LSD

• New Zealand Government Grants $650K For LSD Microdosing Trials (Benzinga)

• Operation Julie: Rural Wales LSD bust becomes a musical (BBC)

Magic Mushrooms

• DEA Sued Again Over Refusal To Allow Psilocybin Access For Patients Despite Federal Law (Marijuana Moment)

• Why some of Colorado’s foremost shrooms advocates won’t be voting to legalize psilocybin (The Denver Post)

• Legal psilocybin prescriptions in Canada (Drug Science)

• Project Solace: The World’s Largest Medical Psilocybin Access and Data Project (Psychedelic Spotlight)

• COMPASS Pathways launches phase II clinical trial of psilocybin therapy in anorexia nervosa (Psychedelic Alpha)

DMT

• U.S. Patent Grant to Strengthen Small Pharma’s DMT Patent Strategy With Injectable Formulation (Psychedelic Alpha)

Novel Psychoactive Substances

• DEA Cancels Proposed Ban Of Five Psychedelics, Giving Scientists More Time To Research Therapeutic Benefits (Marijuana Moment)

• Working with Indigenous allies is the ethical way to develop psychedelic-based pharmaceuticals (STAT News)

• Festival drugs: Warning over 'imposter' substances threat (BBC)

• Ecstasy for the 21st Century: Designer Drugs to Improve MDMA Therapy (Psychedelic Science Review)

Synthetic Cannabinoids

• Easy On The Eyes — This Company Reports Using a Unique Synthetic Cannabinoid Derivative To Treat Glaucoma (Benzinga)

Nitrous Oxide

• Doctors warn ‘dangerous’ laughing gas is becoming an ‘epidemic’ amid rise in hospitalisations (The Independent)

• A Law will Prohibit the Sale of Nitrous Oxide or “Laughing Gas” to Minors in Bulgaria (Novinite.com)

Ketamine

• At Home Sublingual Ketamine Exhibits Rapid And Significant Antidepressant And Anxiolytic Effects (Medical Dialogues)

• Ketamine found to be unlikely to lead to addiction (Medical Xpress)

• Silo Pharma Announces Positive Results from its Topically Administered Formulation of Ketamine (Psychedelic Alpha)

Miscellaneous

• Biden Administration Plans For Legal Psychedelic Therapies Within Two Years (The Intercept)

• San Francisco Launches Bid to Decriminalize Psychedelics (Filter)

• Your Genes May Determine How You React To Psychedelic Drugs (IFLScience)

• The Psychoactive Substances Act on Trial (Volteface)

• The High-Stakes Race to Engineer New Psychedelic Drugs (WIRED)

• Trump Urges ‘Very Quick Trial’ and Death Penalty for Drug Dealers (High Times)

• The Psychedelics Industry’s Next Hurdle Is How to Go Mainstream (Bloomberg)

• One in four Americans say they’ve tried at least one psychedelic drug (YouGov)

• Microdosing: Scientists tackle psychedelic trend becoming ‘creative enhancer of choice’ (The Sydney Morning Herald)

Think Wilder is reader-supported. If you enjoyed this month’s update, please consider helping out by becoming a patron, making a one-time donation, or sharing this post with a friend. Thank you for your support.

Disclaimer: "This Week in Psychedelics" does not censor or analyze the news links presented here. The purpose of this column is solely to catalog how psychedelics are presented by the mass media, which includes everything from the latest scientific research to misinformation.

This Week in Psychedelics - 2.4.22

Cannabis

• Mississippi governor signs law allowing medical marijuana (Leafly)

• The NFL is throwing $1 million into cannabinoid research (Leafly)

• House Officially Approves Marijuana Banking Amendment To Large-Scale Bill Set For Final Passage Friday (Marijuana Moment)

• Delta-8 Debate: The 2018 Farm Bill gave rise to an unlikely intoxicant (Marijuana Business Daily)

• House Advances SAFE Banking Act as Part of the America COMPETES Act (NORML)

• Driving Performance and Cannabis Users’ Perception of Safety - Review (Drug Science)

• Minnesota: Patients’ Access to Herbal Cannabis Products Begins March 1 (NORML)

• Claim of Fentanyl-Laced Cannabis Overdoses in Connecticut was False (High Times)

• Cannabis being used to treat symptoms of Long Covid in new landmark trial (Mirror)

• ‘The science about the benefits of cannabis is limited’: Does legalizing marijuana lead to an increase in tobacco use? (MarketWatch)

• Utah Lawmakers Pass Bill To Protect Medical Cannabis Patients (High Times)

• A Cannabis Monopoly Asteroid is Coming (Marijuana Moment)

• Petition Forces Ohio Lawmakers into Action on Cannabis Legalization (High Times)

• Marijuana legalization push increasingly unites unlikely political bedfellows (Marijuana Business Daily)

• 2021: A Year In Review For The Cannabis Industry (Forbes)

• Top Maryland Lawmaker Files Marijuana Legalization Bill In Anticipation Of Ballot Referendum Passing (Marijuana Moment)

• Pennsylvania Issues Mandatory Recall for Hundreds of Cannabis Products (New Cannabis Ventures)

• Wisconsin Governor Vetoes GOP Bill To Increase Marijuana Extraction Penalties (Marijuana Moment)

• Republican Lawmakers in Virginia Have Drafted New Cannabis Legislation (High Times)

• Marijuana Banking Reform Cleared For House Floor (Again) Following Committee Action On Large-Scale Bill (Marijuana Moment)

• Can Cannabinoids Unlock a Better Understanding of Our Bodies and Brains? (Discover Magazine)

• Nearly One In Ten New Missouri Jobs Came From Medical Marijuana Industry In 2021, Trade Group Report Finds (Marijuana Moment)

• Jackson seeks cannabis exemption as part of shock comeback at age 40 (The Sydney Morning Herald)

LSD

• Fish on acid? Microdosing zebrafish with LSD shows its potential benefits for humans (The Conversation)

• What to know about microdosing LSD (Medical News Today)

Magic Mushrooms

• Virginia Psilocybin Decriminalization Bill Defeated In Senate Committee After Top GOP Lawmaker Flips Support (Marijuana Moment)

• Religious Practice Under Oregon Measure 109 (Psychedelics Today)

• Maine Lawmakers Hear Testimonies For and Against Psilocybin Bill (Truffle Report)

• Seattle Doctor Files DEA Petition To Reschedule Psilocybin For Medical Use (Marijuana Moment)

• America’s only psychedelic mushroom store is a church in Oakland. We observed the sacrament (Leafly)

• Federal Appeals Court Dismisses Cancer Patients’ Case To Use Psilocybin Under Right-To-Try Laws (Marijuana Moment)

• Psyched Wellness Announces Additional Positive Results from the 14-day Oral Toxicity Study of AME-1 (Psilocybin Alpha)

• Health Canada Grants Private Company Approval for Healthcare Professionals to Take Psilocybin, Prove Safety (Truffle Report)

MDMA

• Couple Takes MDMA Right Before Grandfather Dies, Trips in Front of Family (Newsweek)

DMT

• Entheon Biomedical Announces the Approval of DMT Clinical Trial (Psilocybin Alpha)

Ayahuasca

• Yaminawa Women and Ayahuasca: Shamanism, Gender, and History in the Peruvian Amazon (Chacruna)

• Women Who Heal: Musicians in the Urban Ayahuasca Scene (Chacruna)

• Madrinha Rita: Brazilian matriarch of ayahuasca (Chacruna)

5-MeO-DMT

• Inside a 5-MeO-DMT Retreat: Who Should and Shouldn’t Embark on This ‘Hero’s Journey’ (Psychedelic Spotlight)

Peyote

• Mining is Threatening the Peyote Tradition in Mexico (Truffle Report)

Ketamine

• Testimony: Minneapolis police trained to ignore city's civil rights report on ketamine and excited delirium (StarTribune)

• Can Ketamine and A.I. Improve Wellness? (Inc)

• PharmaTher Granted FDA Orphan Drug Designation for Ketamine to Treat Status Epilepticus (Psilocybin Alpha)

Miscellaneous

• Who Will Control the Future of Psychedelics in Colorado? (Westword)

• Utah Lawmakers Vote To Study Benefits Of Psychedelics In Treating Mental Health Disorders (Marijuana Moment)

• Psychedelics Decriminalization Ballot Proposal Filed in Michigan (Truffle Report)

• I Read Every Neuroscience Study On Psychedelics Published Since 2017. Here’s What I Learned (Healing Maps)

• Researchers use linguistic analysis to uncover differences between psychedelic drug experiences (PsyPost)

• Psychedelic therapy effective in reducing suicidality, more trials needed (Healio)

• Psychedelic or Not: Of Mice, 5-HT2A Agonists, and Head Shakes (Psychedelic Science Review)

• One Year on, Oregon Drug Decriminalization Is Boosting Harm Reduction and Housing (Filter)

• Looking Ahead to a Psychedelic 2022 (Psilocybin Alpha)

• The Tortured Double Think of the New Drug Strategy (Transform)

• What Happens When Psychedelic Treatment for PTSD Turns Into a Bad Trip (Slate)

• Are Double-Blind Studies Holding Back Psychedelic Research? (The Dales Report)

• What Research Doesn’t Tell Us About Older Psychedelic Users (Lucid News)

• Jeering Psychedelics: A Critique of Jacques Mabit’s Criticism of Queering Psychedelics (Chacruna)

• Are psychedelics dangerous? - What the research says (Drug Science)

• Psychedelics Without the Trip Could Be 'Healing Magic' for Mental Health (Singularity Hub)

• Clinical study of psychedelic drugs for cancer patients could be a ‘game changer’ (The Salt Lake Tribune)

• Sensible policy on psychedelic drugs is growing more common (The Economist)

Think Wilder is reader-supported. If you enjoyed this week’s update, please consider helping out by becoming a patron, making a one-time donation, or sharing this post with a friend. Thank you for your support.

Disclaimer: "This Week in Psychedelics" does not censor or analyze the news links presented here. The purpose of this column is solely to catalog how psychedelics are presented by the mass media, which includes everything from the latest scientific research to misinformation.

This Month in Psychedelics - December 2021

Happy Holidaze and Happy New Year! Due to an extra busy holiday season on my end, this month’s recap is a bit less detailed than normal and there isn’t a video version up on YouTube. However, I wanted to share December’s biggest highlights so you can get an idea of what happened in the world of psychedelics during the last month of 2021.

Followup

There’s some followup on last month’s story about fentanyl-tainted cannabis. Following the report that the first real case of it was found in Connecticut, a high school in Tennessee was thought to have fentanyl-laced vape pens circulating amongst its teenage students. However, perhaps we should be skeptical. After all, this may be a case of fentanyl panic rather than an actuality. The latest reports have shown that there wasn’t any fentanyl detected in cannabis in Vermont and Massachusetts. And the case in Connecticut is still under development.

Policy

Wins

There were two major drug policy wins this month. Port Townsend, Washington became the 13th city to decriminalize psychedelics and Malta became the first European country to legalize cannabis.

Losses

Not everything was successful though. An attempt to allow therapeutic use of psychedelics in Australia was rejected. The reasoning behind the denial was a lack of sufficient evidence, according to the country’s medical regulator.

Industry

A non-profit known as Freedom to Operate submitted a new legal filing that argues against Compass Pathways’ patent on its form of synthetic psilocybin based on the idea that it is not a novel invention. The results from this case will set a precedent for not just Compass Pathways but other psychedelic companies as well.

Research

Published Studies

Two studies were published this month worth mentioning. The first found that SSRIs can be used safely with psilocybin to treat depression and the second showed that people who use psychedelics were under less stress during Covid-19.

Future Studies

The FDA authorized a Phase 2 clinical trial to treat frontline clinicians dealing with Covid-related distress with psilocybin. The study will aim to assuage depression, anxiety, burnout and post-traumatic stress among doctors, nurses and healthcare professionals.

Research Centers

A new Center for Psychedelic Research and Therapy is launching at the University of Texas at Austin. The center will look at working with psychedelics in a clinical environment in the treatment of mental illness.

Miscellaneous

And last but not least, I’d like to encourage you one last time to take this year’s Global Drug Survey. Today’s the last day you can submit an entry and responses will help researchers better understand how and why people use drugs.

That’s all for this month’s update. Remember to always test and weigh your drugs and until next time—keep thinking wilder.

Think Wilder is reader-supported. If you enjoyed this month’s update, please consider helping out by becoming a patron, making a one-time donation, or sharing this post with a friend. Thank you for your support.

This Week in Psychedelics - 12.24.21

Cannabis

• Analysis: Unregulated Delta-8 Vape Products Frequently Mislabeled, May Contain Heavy Metals (NORML)

• Malta Officially Legalizes Marijuana With President’s Signature, Becoming First In Europe To End Cannabis Prohibition (Marijuana Moment)

• Several States to Usher In the New Year with Cannabis Liberalization Laws (NORML)

• The Next States to Legalize Recreational Marijuana (MSN)

• Pfizer Bets On Medical Cannabis With $6.7 Billion Acquisition (Forbes)

• Scientists are (finally) studying how weed affects athletic performance and recovery (Leafly)

• New York Senator Files Bill To Extend Marijuana Equity Benefits To Gay, Lesbian And Bisexual People (Marijuana Moment)

• Cartels Ditch Pot and Opium Fields for Synthetic Drugs, Mexico Defense Secretary Says (High Times)

• Ohio: Citizens’ Petition Seeks to Compel Lawmakers to Hold Marijuana Legalization Vote (NORML)

• Senator Calls For Federal Marijuana Standard To Measure Impaired Driving (Marijuana Moment)

• Top Maryland Lawmaker Files Marijuana Legalization Referendum For 2022 Ballot (Marijuana Moment)

• Iowa Democrats Announce Plan To Let Voters Decide On Marijuana Legalization Amid GOP Resistance (Marijuana Moment)

• Whole-Plant Cannabis Extract Reduces Epileptic Seizures By 86% in Small Study (High Times)

• Researcher Uses Reddit To Learn What Kinds Of Marijuana Posts Influenced Legalization Attitudes (Marijuana Moment)

• Pair of Cops Booked After Being Caught Smoking Pot in Mississippi (High Times)

• Marijuana Group Releases ‘Robbery Preparedness Guide’ For Dispensaries Amid Spike In Thefts (Marijuana Moment)

• Dr. Sanjay Gupta adds to chorus of cannabis research on autism in 2021 (Leafly)

• Legal Cannabis Outsells Ontario Illicit Market for First Time (High Times)

• These were the weirdest weed news stories of 2021 (Leafly)

LSD

• U.S. FDA puts plans to test LSD in anxiety patients in clinical study on hold (Reuters)

Magic Mushrooms

• Canada’s Psilocybin Policy Reform Movement Continues to Make Progress Federally (Truffle Report)

• FDA Approves Psilocybin For Binge Eating Study By Tryp Therapeutics (Benzinga)

Ayahuasca

• Global ayahuasca trend drives deforestation in Brazil’s Acre state (Mongabay)

Morning Glory Seeds

• Study shows common flower species holds promise for beneficial psychedelic drugs (Newswise)

Ketamine

• Ketamine Therapy Quickly Reduces Depression and Suicidal Thoughts (SciTechDaily)

DXM

• Cough medicine creates dangerous interaction (The Seattle Times)

Miscellaneous

• Port Townsend Becomes 13th City to Decriminalize Psychedelics (DoubleBlind)

• Psychedelics: The newest tool in nuclear negotiations? (Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists)

• How Should Psychedelic Medicine Handle “Flashbacks”? (Mad in America)

• New center to study psychedelics pops up at University of Texas at Austin (My San Antonio)

• The Dumbest Drug Scare Stories of 2021 (VICE)

• DEA Wants To Help Parents Decode The Emojis Young People Use To Discuss Marijuana And Other ‘Bomb Ass’ Drugs (Marijuana Moment)

• GOP Lawmakers File Bills To Streamline Research Into Marijuana, Psychedelics And Other Schedule I Drugs (Marijuana Moment)

• Colorado Ballot Initiatives Filed to Legalize Psychedelics (Truffle Report)

• Two Leaders in Psychedelics Industry and the Harm Reduction Approach (Nasdaq)

• How Do Hallucinogenic Drugs Change Our Personality? (Psychology Today)

• Microdosing companion app Houston wants to be your guide to 'inner space' (Mashable)

• Why Psychedelic Research May Bring the Next Big Breakthrough in Dementia Treatment (Psychedelic Spotlight)

• MYND Life Sciences Acquires Rights for the Use of Psychedelics to Treat Alzheimer’s Disease and other Dementias (Psilocybin Alpha)

Think Wilder is reader-supported. If you enjoyed this week’s update, please consider helping out by becoming a patron, making a one-time donation, or sharing this post with a friend. Thank you for your support.

Disclaimer: "This Week in Psychedelics" does not censor or analyze the news links presented here. The purpose of this column is solely to catalog how psychedelics are presented by the mass media, which includes everything from the latest scientific research to misinformation.

This Week in Psychedelics - 12.17.21

Cannabis

• Malta becomes first EU country to legalise cannabis for personal use (Euronews)

• St. Louis Mayor Signs Bill To Decriminalize Marijuana Possession And Cultivation (Marijuana Moment)

• No Fentanyl Found in Cannabis After All, Vermont Police Say (High Times)

• Viral story shared across social media about two teens overdosing on fentanyl-laced marijuana in Springfield was untrue (MassLive)

• Ministry pushes full cannabis legalisation (Bangkok Post)

• Government-Funded Study Shows Unprecedented Decline in Marijuana Use By Young People (NORML)

• Pfizer to Acquire Pharmaceutical Company Testing Cannabinoid Treatment (High Times)

• Heavy metals in cannabis plants could affect human health, study finds (New Atlas)

• Rhode Island Legalization Bill Set for Early 2022 Introduction (High Times)

• Baltimore: City Officials Move to Abolish Pre-Employment Drug Screens for Many Public Employees (NORML)

• Smoking CBD-Rich Marijuana Has ‘No Significant Impact’ On Driving Ability, Study Finds (Marijuana Moment)

• Cannabis use could cause harmful drug interactions (ScienceDaily)

LSD

• Cary Grant Is High on LSD in ‘Flying Over Sunset.’ Everyone Else Has a Bad Trip. (The Daily Beast)

• PharmaTher Announces Positive Research Results for LSD Microneedle Patch (BioSpace)

• MindMed Initiates Phase 2a LSD Trial for the Treatment of Adult ADHD (Psilocybin Alpha)

Magic Mushrooms

• New Filing Challenges Compass Pathways’ Infamous Patent on Synthetic Psilocybin (VICE)

• Psilocybin-assisted psychotherapy reduces loss of meaning and suicidal ideation among cancer patients (PsyPost)

• With health care workers hurting, a doctor wants to see if a psychedelic can help (NBC News)

• COMPASS Pathways announces positive outcome of 25mg COMP360 psilocybin therapy as adjunct to SSRI antidepressants in open-label treatment-resistant depression study (Psilocybin Alpha)

• More patients granted psilocybin exemption by federal government (CBC)

• Warning: Oregon Legalized Supported Adult Use of Psilocybin, Not Psychedelic Therapy (Chacruna)

• New York Lawmaker Files Bill To Legalize Medical Psilocybin Treatments, With Focus On First Responders And Veterans (Marijuana Moment)

• This Trippy New Book Takes You Through Modern Mushroom History—With Cartoons (DoubleBlind)

• Psyched Wellness Announces Path to Market for AME-1-derived Products in the USA (Psilocybin Alpha)

• Silo Wellness announces series of psilocybin retreats in Jamaica (Globetrender)

• HAVN Life Successfully Exports Psilocybin from Jamaica Facility into the U.S. for Research Purposes (Psilocybin Alpha)

MDMA

• The Big Return – and Decline in Quality – of MDMA (VICE)

• Latest trials confirm the benefits of MDMA – the drug in ecstasy – for treating PTSD (The Conversation)

• MDMA could soon be used to treat PTSD according to physicians (Mixmag)

Ayahuasca

• Study links the ceremonial use of ayahuasca to robust reductions in neuroticism (PsyPost)

• Educating Gringos in Shipibo Ways (Chacruna)

• Esther Jean Langdon: Half a Century of Research About Shamanism and Ayahuasca (Chacruna)

Novel Psychoactive Substances

• Cybin Awarded Notice of Allowance from U.S. Patent and Trademark Office for CYB004 (Deuterated Psychedelic Tryptamine) for the Treatment of Anxiety Disorders (Psilocybin Alpha)

• atai Life Sciences Announces Successful Outcome of Phase 2a Biomarker Trial of RL-007 in Cognitive Impairment Associated with Schizophrenia (Psilocybin Alpha)

Synthetic Cannabinoids

• Tainted synthetic marijuana linked to severe bleeding cases in Florida (Live Science)

Miscellaneous

• Psychedelics Rejected for Therapeutic Use in Australia (VICE)

• Can a Values-Centered Psychedelic Ecosystem Effectively Compete? (Lucid News)

• Mind Medicine Australia’s Response to the Announcement of the TGA NOT to Reschedule the Medical Use of MDMA for Treatment Resistant PTSD and the Medical Use of Psilocybin for Treatment Resistant Depression as Part of Therapy. (Mind Medicine Australia)

• How Do Psychedelics Change Your Personality? These Researchers Tried To Find Out (IFLScience)

• ‘This isn’t the 60s again’: psychedelics business takes off amid culture clash (The Guardian)

• 2022 Global Drug Survey: Help make it bigger than ever for its 10 year anniversary (TalkingDrugs)

• Most Addiction Specialists Support Legalized Therapeutic Psychedelics (Medscape)

• Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy on the Rise in VA Hospitals (Lucid News)

• Psychedelics and Substance Use Disorder: 4000 BCE to Present Day (Psychedelic Science Review)

• Many Indians Are Experimenting With Psychedelics, Other Drugs to Deal With Mental Health Issues (The Swaddle)

• Editor’s Choice Award 2021-Best Study on Psychedelics and Neuroplasticity (Psychedelic Science Review)

• atai Impact Establishes the atai Fellowship Fund in Psychedelic Neuroscience with Massachusetts General Hospital’s Center for the Neuroscience of Psychedelics (Psilocybin Alpha)

• How to Start Microdosing Psychedelics (DoubleBlind)

• Understanding HPPD to Prioritize Harm Reduction of a Very Real Psychedelic Risk (Psychedelic Spotlight)

Think Wilder is reader-supported. If you enjoyed this week’s update, please consider helping out by becoming a patron, making a one-time donation, or sharing this post with a friend. Thank you for your support.

Disclaimer: "This Week in Psychedelics" does not censor or analyze the news links presented here. The purpose of this column is solely to catalog how psychedelics are presented by the mass media, which includes everything from the latest scientific research to misinformation.