Large survey looks at difficult mental states after ayahuasca and later mental health

The question

How common are unpleasant mental states after drinking ayahuasca, who is most likely to report them, and how do they relate to people’s overall mental health?

What they did

Researchers reanalyzed data from the Global Ayahuasca Survey, an international online questionnaire completed by 10,836 people who had used ayahuasca, a plant-based brew from the Amazon. Responses were collected between March 1, 2017 and December 31, 2019, and analyzed from November 30, 2021. Participants rated a preset list of adverse mental states experienced after ayahuasca use, and mental health was measured with the SF-12, a 12-question general health questionnaire. The team used statistical and machine-learning methods to look for patterns between personal characteristics, adverse states and SF-12 scores.

What they found

14.2% of respondents (767) reported a previous anxiety disorder and 19.7% (1,064) a previous depressive disorder. Despite this, the median mental health score on the SF-12 was 50.16, which the authors describe as comparable to the general population. People with a history of anxiety or depression reported more adverse mental states after ayahuasca use. More reported “visual distortions” and greater ayahuasca use were correlated with better mental health scores. Women reported more adverse states but did not show worse mental health.

The fine print

This is a cross-sectional online survey of people who chose to take part and who already use ayahuasca, so it cannot show cause and effect and likely misses people who had bad experiences and stopped. Mental health, past diagnoses and adverse effects were all self-reported, sometimes long after the experiences. The SF-12 is a broad health questionnaire, not a diagnostic tool, and the reported percentages and counts do not align cleanly in the abstract. This summary is based on the abstract alone.

What it means

In this large survey, people with a history of depression or anxiety more often reported distressing mental states after ayahuasca, yet difficult or unusual experiences were not consistently linked to worse mental health overall. The findings suggest that labelling every uncomfortable psychedelic experience as an “adverse effect” may be too simple, but a survey like this cannot establish what ayahuasca does to anyone.

Evidence grade: Low. A reanalysis of a large online survey of self-selected ayahuasca users with self-reported outcomes and no control group, so it can show associations only.

This summary is based on the study’s published abstract.