Systematic review · 2026
Review of 11 studies on non-medical psychedelic use and suicidal thoughts
- Original title
- [Illicit use of classic psychedelics and suicidality: A systematic literature review].
- Authors
- Pereira de Oliveira AB, Hein M
- Journal
- L'Encephale, 2026
- Molecules
- Psilocybin, LSD, DMT, Mescaline
- Conditions
- Suicidal ideation
- Evidence grade
- Low
- Source
- Read the original paper
The question
Is non-medical (illicit) use of classic psychedelics linked to suicidal thoughts, plans or attempts? And does the answer differ depending on which substance is used?
What they did
The authors followed PRISMA systematic review methods, searching the PubMed-Medline and Scopus databases in March 2026 for studies published between 1 January 2015 and 31 December 2025. They looked for research that separately analysed the effect of illicit psilocybin, LSD, DMT or mescaline use on suicidality in people aged 12 and older. Reviews, case reports, editorials, protocols, conference papers and preprints were excluded. Two authors screened 970 records and selected 11 studies.
What they found
The findings differed by substance. Psilocybin use was significantly associated with lower suicidality. LSD and DMT use were significantly associated with higher suicidality. Mescaline use showed no association with suicidality. The authors rated all 11 included studies as having low methodological quality and limited strength of evidence.
The fine print
The review does not report how many people were covered across the 11 studies. All included studies were observational and were judged low quality, so these are associations, not evidence that any substance raises or lowers suicide risk. People who choose one psychedelic over another may differ in many ways that the studies could not fully account for, and reverse causation is possible. This summary is based only on the published abstract.
What it means
Existing research on non-medical psychedelic use and suicidal thoughts points in different directions depending on the substance, but the underlying studies are too weak to support firm conclusions either way.
Evidence grade: Low. A systematic review whose 11 included studies were all observational and judged by the authors to be of low methodological quality, so no causal conclusions can be drawn.
This summary is based on the study’s published abstract.