Microdosing psychedelics could benefit people with ADHD, study shows
It found that the consumption of small amounts of non-hallucinogenic psychedelics could improve mindfulness
Microdosing psychedelics could benefit people with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), according to a new study.
Having long been proposed as a positive and potentially transformative treatment for the condition, a new study by the Department of Neuropsychology and Psychopharmacology at Maastricht University, Netherlands has made some encouraging findings.
Published in Frontiers in Psychiatry, the new research suggests that microdosing psychedelics such as LSD or magic mushrooms might aid mindfulness (defined as the ability to be present and allocate attention to what one is directly experiencing) in adults with ADHD.
On the subject, the NHS said that the majority of adults with the condition - which affects around 2.6 million adults in the UK alone - have issues focusing on and completing tasks, feeling restless or impatient, as well as coping with stress.
With its pool of 233 participants with ADHD or ADHD-like symptoms, the new study found that 80% of people indicated having practiced mindfulness during a four-week period of ingesting small, non-hallucinogenic doses psychedelics, measuring their mindfulness and personality traits during the period.
The study, which can be read in full here, found that: "Trait mindfulness, specifically description and non-judging of inner experience, was increased, and neuroticism was decreased after 4 weeks of MD compared to baseline. Using conventional medication and/or having comorbid diagnoses did not change the MD-induced effects on mindfulness and personality traits after 4 weeks."
From two months ago, read DJ Mag's feature examining the reasons why there are so many neurodivergent people in electronic music. From last year, revisit DJ Mag's long-form feature exploring the relationship between neurodiversity and dance music.
