Psilocybin may offer mental benefits beyond depression treatment, research reveals

24 Sep 2024 — Both psilocybin — the active ingredient in “magic mushrooms” — and standard antidepressants show similar longer-term improvements in depressive symptoms, according to a new clinical trial. However, the researchers reveal that people taking psilocybin instead of standard treatment reported better psychosocial functioning, including a greater sense of meaning in life and psychological connectedness. 

In the double-blind, randomized controlled trial, the researchers divided 59 patients with moderate to severe depression into two groups. One was treated with a single dose of psilocybin, and the other group received a six-week course of escitalopram, a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI).