THE MAGIC OF MUSHROOMS

NEW YORK -- People who took psilocybin, a drug made from mushrooms,
reported profound mystical experiences that led to behaviour changes
lasting weeks -- all part of an experiment that recalls the
psychedelic '60s.

Many of the 36 volunteers rated their reaction to a single dose of
psilocybin as one of the most meaningful or spiritually significant
experiences of their lives.

Some comments "just seemed unbelievable," said Roland Griffiths of the
Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore, the study's
lead author.

The researchers suggest the drug some day may help drug addicts kick
their habit or aid terminally ill patients struggling with anxiety and
depression.

It may also provide a way to study what happens in the brain during
intense spiritual experiences, the scientists said.

Most of the volunteers said the experience had changed them in
beneficial ways, such as making them more compassionate, loving,
optimistic and patient. Family members said they noticed a difference,
too.

Psilocybin, like LSD or mescaline, is in a class of drugs called
hallucinogens or psychedelics. Research was largely shut down after
widespread recreational abuse of the drugs during the 1960s.