Ayahuasca, an herbal decoction used ancestrally by Amazonian Indians, improves the health status of people who have followed these rites in Holland and Spain: they show better general well-being, physical activity, healthy eating and less diseases than the population of their respective countries, according to a study. In Spain it needs to be regulated, like MDMA, psilocybin, DMT or LSD.
A team of researchers from Brazil, Spain and the Netherlands has found that participants in ceremonies using ayahuasca show higher rates of general well-being, physical activity, healthy eating and a lower incidence of chronic diseases than other people.
Ayahuasca is an herbal decoction used since ancient times by Amazonian Indians in their traditional medicine.The composition of the drink varies in different communities, but the essential ingredient is the Banisteriopsiscaapi vine, also called ayahuasca, which contains harmalines. When visionary experiences are sought, the chacruna bush (Psychtriaviridis) or the chacropanga vine (Diplopteryscabrerana), which contain the powerful psychoactive compound N, N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT), are added to ayahuasca. Harmalines are inhibitors of the enzyme monoamine oxidase (MAO) type A, which prevents the inactivation of DMT in the gastrointestinal tract.
New scientific approach
Although DMT is a controlled substance, neitherayahuasca nor any decoction made with plants containing DMT is subject to international control.In some countries, moreover, its use is legally recognized, as is the case in Peru, where ayahuasca is recognized as Cultural Heritage, or in Brazil for ritual ceremonies for the followers of some syncretic religions, in particular the Santo Daime church (legally present in Spain and Holland) and the União do Vegetal center.
However, although there are dozens of scientific studies on ayuahuasca, in recent decades research on this decoction has expanded beyond the fields of anthropology and ethnobotany.
Researchers have recently reoriented the scientific approach with the goal of understanding how ayahuasca works and its impact on human and community health.
New approach
To deepen this approach, researchers from Spain, the Netherlands and Brazil, led by the scientific director of the International Center for Ethnobotanical Education, Research and Service (ICEERS), José Carlos Bouso, have conducted a survey among 377 participants in Dutch ceremonies with the use of ayahuasca. The results are published in the Journal of Psychoactive Drugs.
50.1 percent of the participants were female; 84.6 percent were Dutch. The mean age was 48.8 years (22 to 80 years). 57.8 percent attended such events for more than five years, and 30 percent more than 100 times.
The authors of the paper were interested in data related to general health (body mass index, chronic diseases and medical consultations, medication, use of tobacco, alcohol and other psychoactive substances) and lifestyle (diet, physical activity, social networks).
Participants were also asked to complete standardized psychometric questionnaires. The information obtained was compared with statistical data from comparable demographic segments of the population.
Surprising results
After processing the data, the researchers concluded that ayahuasca users have fewer chronic diseases than the general population. They also feel less lonely, eat healthier (more vegetables, fruits and legumes, as well as less meat and grains) and are more physically active.
In addition, during the COVID pandemic, they consumed less alcohol, although they increased their consumption of other psychoactive substances, while the level of harm associated with the latter did not differ in the samples between the main and control groups.
It was also found that those who participated in more than 100 ayahuasca ceremonies, when faced with difficult situations, were more likely to prefer active problem solving, while those who attended 3 to 10 such events tended to resort to problem avoidance strategies.
Limitations
The study has several limitations, the researchers acknowledge. One is that the people who participated in the study did so after a positive experience, so people who had negative experiences may have been underrepresented in the sample.
Another limitation refers to the fact that the data obtained are observational and do not indicate a causal relationship between the intake of the entheogenic decoction and better physical and mental health.
According to the authors of the study, the most appropriate interpretation of their results is not that ayahuasca is the cause of better health indicators, but that people who use self-care and stress management strategies use ayahuasca ceremonies as another tool to improve overall health.
