Ayahuasca and Public Health: Health Status, Psychosocial Well-Being, Lifestyle, and Coping Strategies in a Large Sample of Ritual Ayahuasca Users
This survey (n=380) focuses on psycho-social well-being, lifestyle, and coping strategies in a large sample of long-term ayahuasca users. The participants in this study associated long-term ayahuasca use with a higher positive perception of health or with a healthy lifestyle, among others. The study offers insight into the long-term effects of ayahuasca on public health and proposes incorporating a communitarian approach into society to benefit public health to ensure a respectful and controlled use of psychedelics.
Authors
- Jamie Hallak
- Rafael dos Santos
- Gonzalo Ona
Published
Abstract
Introduction
Assessing the health status of ayahuasca users has been challenging due to the limitations involved in randomized clinical trials and psychometric approaches. The main objective of this study is the implementation of an approach based on public health indicators.
Methods
We developed a self-administered questionnaire that was administered to long-term ayahuasca users around Spain. The questionnaire was administrated face-to-face to participants (n = 380) in places where ayahuasca ceremonies were occurring. Public health indicators were compared with Spanish normative data, and intergroup analyses were conducted.
Results
Long-term ayahuasca use was associated with higher positive perception of health or with a healthy lifestyle, among other outcomes. Fifty-six percent of the sample reported reducing their use of prescription drugs due to ayahuasca use. Participants who used ayahuasca more than 100 times scored higher in personal values measures.
Discussion
The main conclusion of this study is that a respectful and controlled use of hallucinogenic/psychedelic drugs taken in communitarian settings can be incorporated into modern society with benefits for public health. This new approach, based on the use of health indicators that were not used in previous ayahuasca studies, offers relevant information about the impact of long-term exposure to ayahuasca on public health.
Research Summary of 'Ayahuasca and Public Health: Health Status, Psychosocial Well-Being, Lifestyle, and Coping Strategies in a Large Sample of Ritual Ayahuasca Users'
Introduction
Ayahuasca is a traditional Amazonian decoction typically combining Banisteriopsis caapi with plants that contain N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT); its use has spread from indigenous and Brazilian religious settings into diverse international contexts. Earlier research has examined clinical trials of serotonergic psychedelics and population-level survey data, and some naturalistic comparisons of ritual users versus non-users have suggested better outcomes on certain neuropsychological and psychopathological measures. However, there has been little work using public-health indicators to assess the broader bio-psychosocial status of long-term ritual ayahuasca users outside clinical trials. Ona and colleagues set out to address that gap by conducting a face-to-face assessment of long-term ritual ayahuasca users in Spain using a self-administered questionnaire built from standard psychometric instruments and public-health survey indicators. The aim was to describe health status, psychosocial well-being, lifestyle, coping strategies, and personal values in this population and to compare key indicators with Spanish normative data, while also exploring associations with frequency of ayahuasca use, type of ceremony, and gender.
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Study Details
- Study Typeindividual
- Journal
- Compound
- Topic
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- APA Citation
Ona, G., Kohek, M., Massaguer, T., Gomariz, A., Jiménez, D. F., Dos Santos, R. G., Hallak, J. E. C., Alcázar-Córcoles, M. Á., & Bouso, J. C. (2019). Ayahuasca and Public Health: Health Status, Psychosocial Well-Being, Lifestyle, and Coping Strategies in a Large Sample of Ritual Ayahuasca Users. Journal of Psychoactive Drugs, 51(2), 135-145. https://doi.org/10.1080/02791072.2019.1567961
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