Coloradans interested in trying psychedelic mushrooms for medicinal purposes will soon be able to test them legally after voters said yes this week to legalizing the drug.
As of Friday afternoon, just more than 52% of the state’s votes were cast in favor of Proposition 122 (National Medicine Health Act of 2022).
The vote legalizes regulated access to natural medicine for those 21 and up. And according to the proposition, natural medicine includes plants or fungi that impact an individual’s mental health.
The vote also calls for state regulators to create a program to make the natural medicines available and the appointment of an advisory board to guide the department.
The psychedelics, often called magic mushrooms or shrooms, are usually sought after for their hallucinogenic effects.
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Proponents such as Canadian former professional ice hockey player Daniel Carcillo have said the drug helped them.
He was diagnosed with multiple concussions and struggled with impulse control issues, insomnia, depression, anxiety, and suicidal ideation, he told USA TODAY Sports.
A former teammate suggested he look into mushrooms, so he visited a farm for about a week and tried them.
“It helped to reset my brain,” he told USA TODAY Sports. “It helped to break a bunch of the destructive thought patterns that I was stuck in. Everything started to get better.”
Carcillo is now founder and CEO of Wesana Health in Chicago, a medical company that is testing the compounds in psychedelic mushrooms for treating mental health.
But recreational use of the drug has led to some episodes, including an incident on Oct. 4 aboard a United Airlines flight.
Officials said a man had taken magic mushrooms before taking a trip from Miami to Washington, D.C. when he attacked two flight attendants.
They said the man, Cherruy Loghan Sevilla, grabbed the person sitting next to him before “wandering around the plane, running up and down the aisle, clapping loudly near the cockpit and yelling obscenities.”
He admitted to the FBI that he had taken psilocybin before the flight and said he was sorry for his actions. He was charged with assault and with interfering with flight crew members and attendants.
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How they work and other effects
The mushrooms, which are found in Mexico, Central America, and the United States, contain a chemical called psilocybin, according to the Drug Enforcement Administration.
They are taken orally and can also be brewed as a tea or added to other foods to work around their bitter flavor, the DEA said.
Using mushrooms can lead to nausea, vomiting, muscle weakness, and lack of coordination; those who have used them have experienced hallucinations and an inability to discern fantasy from reality, the DEA said.
Among the growing research into the effects of mushrooms, a Harvard University study found that people who used psilocybin were 30% less likely to develop opioid disorders, compared with those who never tried the drug.
Some medical experts believe mushrooms can be dangerous to a small group of people who have serious mental health issues. But overall, experts say the drug isn’t physically dangerous or addictive.
Contributing: Trevor Hughes and Jordan Mendoza.
Saleen Martin is a reporter on USA TODAY’s NOW team. She is from Norfolk, Virginia – the 757 – and loves all things horror, witches, Christmas, and food. Follow her on Twitter at @Saleen_Martin or email her at sdmartin@usatoday.com.