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Magic Mushrooms Pass First Hurdle as Depression Treatment

Magic mushrooms, Psilocybe semilanceata, grow outside Brighton. — Magic mushrooms, Psilocybe semilanceata, grow outside Brighton.
Photographer: Andrew Hasson/Getty Images

By

Marthe Fourcade

December 12, 2019, 9:22 AM UTCUpdated onDecember 12, 2019, 1:10 PM UTC

Another party drug is showing signs of going legit as magic mushrooms cleared the first hurdle of tests required to become a treatment for depression.

The active ingredient in the mushrooms, psilocybin, was found to be safe and well tolerated when given to healthy volunteers in a study by researchers at King’s College London. Unsurprisingly, the subjects got high.