Spirituality

Why doctors give you pills and not ancient plant remedies

*for example, Chrisian Ratsch reports that Psilocybe azurescens (dry weight) contains 1.29 to 1.78% psilocybin, 0.18 to 0.37% baeocystin, and 0.27 to 0.5% psilocin. As a professional neuroscientist with an interest in psychedelic medicines, it is clear to me that the attempt to reduce organisms to single active principles is challenged by the sheer complexity…

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Anthropology

The political significance of LSD

“It is curious to me that what I see as the two greatest threats—environmental crisis and [political] tribalism—these drugs directly address both those mindsets. They undermine our tendency to objectify nature, to think of ourselves as separate from it. They undermine tribalism in that people tend to emerge from these experiences thinking that we are…

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Science

Psychedelic drugs change brain cells in ways that could help fight depression, addiction and more

The study, led by UC Davis chemist David E. Olson, was published Tuesday, June 12th, in the journal Cell Reports. The discovery of this neurite-promoting property could shed light on why these chemically distinct drugs all appear helpful in treating depression, anxiety, addiction and post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD, Olson said. In test tubes as well as…

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Biography/Memoir

…Jeff Sessions’ drug war power grab

If this bill passes, Sessions would have unchecked power to ban drugs [and plants] and apply harsh penalties at his whim, with no oversight and no basis in health or science. The Stop Importation and Trafficking of Synthetic Analogues (SITSA) Act is misguided legislation that would give Sessions’ Justice Department broad new powers to ban…

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Spirituality

A Christian approach to psychedelics

This is a book (Michael Pollan’s new book, (How To Change Your Mind: What The New Science of Psychedelics Tells Us About Consciousness, Dying, Addiction, Depression, and Transcendence) about LSD and magic mushrooms from which religious conservatives can learn a great deal. I encourage you to read it with an open but critical mind. Let me…

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Anthropology

Denver club for runners who love cannabis…

While using cannabis to treat inflammation and muscle soreness isn’t a new concept, just five years ago most athletes would’ve laughed at the thought of using cannabis to enhance their workouts. Today, however, more runners are reporting both the athletic and recreational benefits of ingesting lightly dosed edibles and other infused products before going for…

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