“We found that since 2019, the number of people using psilocybin has gone up sharply,” said Karilynn Rockhill, PhD, co-lead author of the study and researcher at the Colorado School of Public Health. “This seems to line up with when some U.S. states began to decriminalize or legalize it.”

• Lifetime use among adults rose from 10% in 2019 (about 25 million people) to 12.1% in 2023 (over 31 million people).
• Past-year use increased by 44% among young adults (ages 18–29) and 188% among adults over 30.
• People with mental health conditions or chronic pain were more likely to report using psilocybin.
• Psilocybin-related poison center calls rose dramatically: 201% in adults; 317% in teens; and 723% in children between 2019 and 2023.
• In 2023, more adults used psilocybin than drugs like cocaine, LSD, methamphetamine or illegal opioids.

“What really surprised us was how quickly these numbers changed and how many people using psilocybin had conditions like depression, anxiety or chronic pain,” Rockhill said. “New laws or growing interest in its potential mental health benefits may be prompting people to seek psilocybin as a form of self-treatment.”

Original Article (CU):
More Americans are using psilocybin – especially those with mental health conditions, study shows
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