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Written By: Admin | Updated : March 10, 2012 7:12 PM IST
A single dose of psychedelic drug LSD helped heavy alcoholics cope with the after-effects while lowering the possibility of a relapse, according to several studies.
The results of these studies demonstrated that LSD patients were less likely to relapse into problematic alcohol use and had higher levels of total abstinence, said Teri Krebs and P l- rjan Johansen, researchers at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology. LSD was also used in the treatment of alcoholics 40 years ago with good results. In the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s, researchers experimented with LSD in treating various disorders, including alcoholism. Not all of them were scientifically tenable today, but some were, the Journal of Psychopharmacology reports. "There has long been a need for better treatments for addiction. We think it is time to look at the use of psychedelics in treating various conditions," the researchers say, according to Norwegian statement.
They found six different studies of LSD and alcoholism that were scientifically sound, in which patients were randomly assigned, as if by tossing a coin, to receive either LSD or a comparison treatment. They combined all the data from these studies, involving a total of 536 people - the first such rigorous quantitative analysis in the world. All of the studies were conducted either in the U.S. or Canada between 1966 and 1970. The studies all involved individuals who were admitted to treatment for alcoholism and who voluntarily participated in the trials. Nearly all were men.
Within each of the studies all patients were given the same treatment programme. But on one treatment day some patients were given a single large dose of LSD, while other group received a low dose of LSD or a stimulant drug - or nothing. "Neither patients nor the individuals who were treating them knew in advance who would get a full dose of LSD. On average, 59 percent of full-dose (LSD) patients showed a clear improvement compared with 38 percent in the other groups," say Krebs and Johansen. Many of the patients said they had gained a new appreciation for their alcohol problem and new motivation to address it.
Source:IANS
