Pubdate: Sun, 13 Aug 2006 Source: Province, The (CN BC) 14-46d2-86fa-fb6c81f6d164 Copyright: 2006 The Province Contact: http://www.canada.com/theprovince/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/476 Author: John Bermingham, The Province Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/hallucinogens.htm (Hallucinogens) HEALTH OFFICERS MULL IDEA OF GIVING PSYCHEDELIC DRUGS TO ADDICTS But Plans In Works: Peyote Used To Treat Addictions In The U.S. B.C.'s medical community is warming to the idea of treating drug addicts with psychedelic drugs. But so far, no one is offering to prove that the treatment works. Provincial Health Officer Dr. Perry Kendall says there is a possible use for psychedelic drugs, in combination with talk therapy, when treating addicts. "Can psychedelic drugs be used in combination with . . . talk therapy?" he said Friday. "If you put those two things together, you get better results than just drugs or just talk therapy." City of Vancouver drug-policy officials have proposed giving peyote and ayahuasca to addicts, combined with talk therapy. Both drugs are used by aboriginal people in Latin America for ceremonial or spiritual purposes. In a November 2005 report, the Four Pillars team said that ayahuasca, a psychedelic tea made from plants, "may result in profound lasting and positive behavioural and lifestyle changes." Peyote has been used as an antidote to alcoholism. U.S. natives have used it in rituals to treat addiction. Vancouver drug-policy officials were unavailable for comment. But Dr. David Marsh, who heads Addiction Services at the Vancouver Coastal Health Authority, said that psychedelic drugs are not currently being offered to addicts and there are no plans to make them available. "However, if someone were to conduct a rigorous trial and demonstrate effectiveness, then it may be something worth exploring," Marsh told The Province. "If a natural compound shows promise then it should be investigated." Scott MacDonald, assistant director of the B.C. Centre for Addictions Research, said that psychedelics like LSD were used to treat alcoholics in the 1960s. "It's pretty well unproven at this stage whether it's beneficial or not," said MacDonald. "I'm all for the clinical trials and the evaluation studies to see if it is beneficial." Kendall said that if the treatment proves effective, it should be made available. "I would like to think that if something is subjected to a rigorous clinical trial, and it's shown to work, that we wouldn't stop that being available just because it didn't fit our particular ideological or moral paradigm," Kendall said. - --- MAP posted-by: Derek