This survey study (n=278) aimed to develop a codebook of benefits and challenges associated with microdosing. The authors found, among other things, that many parallels exist between the effects reported as benefits and those reported as challenges.
Abstract of Psychedelic microdosing benefits and challenges: an empirical codebook
“Background: Microdosing psychedelics is the practice of consuming very low, sub-hallucinogenic doses of a psychedelic substance, such as lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) or psilocybin-containing mushrooms. According to media reports, microdosing has grown in popularity, yet the scientific literature contains minimal research on this practice. There has been limited reporting on adverse events associated with microdosing, and the experiences of microdosers in community samples have not been categorized.
Methods: In the present study, we develop a codebook of microdosing benefits and challenges (MDBC) based on the qualitative reports of a real-world sample of 278 microdosers.
Results: We describe novel findings, both in terms of beneficial outcomes, such as improved mood (26.6%) and focus (14.8%), and in terms of challenging outcomes, such as physiological discomfort (18.0%) and increased anxiety (6.7%). We also show parallels between benefits and drawbacks and discuss the implications of these results. We probe for substance-dependent differences, finding that psilocybin-only users report the benefits of microdosing were more important than other users report.
Conclusions: These mixed-methods results help summarize and frame the experiences reported by an active microdosing community as high-potential avenues for future scientific research. The MDBC taxonomy reported here informs future research, leveraging participant reports to distil the highest-potential intervention targets so research funding can be efficiently allocated. Microdosing research complements the full-dose literature as clinical treatments are developed and neuropharmacological mechanisms are sought. This framework aims to inform researchers and clinicians as experimental microdosing research begins in earnest in the years to come.”
Authors: Thomas Anderson, Rotem Petranker, Adam Christopher, Daniel Rosenbaum, Cory Weissman, Le-Anh Dinh-Williams, Katrina Hui & Emma Hapke
Summary of Psychedelic microdosing benefits and challenges: an empirical codebook
Microdosing psychedelic substances has recently grown in popularity, and scientific studies are just beginning to explore the effects of microdosing. This study aims to provide a data-driven taxonomy describing the positive and negative experiences reported by microdosers, summarizing high-potential avenues for focused experimental investigations.
The benefits of full-dose psychedelics
Early studies linked psychedelic use with beneficial effects, but prohibition halted research for 40 years. Modern research shows that psychedelics may be useful for treating alcohol and tobacco dependence, depression, end-of-life anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder.
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Psychedelic microdosing benefits and challenges: an empirical codebook
https://doi.org/10.1186/s12954-019-0308-4
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Cite this paper (APA)
Anderson, T., Petranker, R., Christopher, A., Rosenbaum, D., Weissman, C., Dinh-Williams, L. A., ... & Hapke, E. (2019). Psychedelic microdosing benefits and challenges: an empirical codebook. Harm reduction journal, 16, 1-10.