Adults who microdose psychedelics report health related motivations and lower levels of anxiety and depression compared to non-microdosers

Introduction

Rootman and colleagues situate microdosing—regular use of sub-sensorium amounts of psychedelics—within a long history of psychedelic use by Indigenous peoples and recent resurgence in non‑Indigenous contexts. The introduction summarises how most prior scientific attention has focused on full psychedelic doses, whereas microdosing (commonly with psilocybin or LSD) is reported anecdotally to support mood, cognition and general well‑being. The authors note heterogeneous microdosing practices (dose, frequency) and the growing but understudied phenomenon of "stacking", the co‑use of non‑psychedelic substances such as Lion's Mane, niacin or chocolate with microdoses. They highlight a lack of rigorous evidence on microdosing’s mental health effects, on whether reported differences vary by prior mental health history, and on how motives and practices differ across subgroups. The present study reports baseline data from the Microdose.me project, an ongoing longitudinal study designed to characterise microdosing practices, motivations and mental health in a large international sample. The investigators aimed to (1) describe microdosing practices including stacking, (2) compare microdosers and non‑microdosers on depression, anxiety and stress symptoms—particularly among those reporting mental health concerns—and (3) examine whether practices and motives vary by gender and mental health status. The authors present these baseline cross‑sectional findings as a contribution to the limited empirical literature and as groundwork for future longitudinal and experimental work.