MEDICINES ARE DRUGS –
Jan. 2, 2023 – Early studies have shown promise with treating addiction to tobacco and alcohol. The question has gained urgency as the U.S. faces an overdose surge that is killing more than 100,000 people annually, the majority linked to opioids, and a spike in deaths tied directly to alcohol, which have hit their highest rate in decades.
Peter Hendricks, a public health professor at the University of Alabama Birmingham, said cocaine users have asked skeptically, “You’re going to help me stop getting high — by getting me high?” He is studying whether psychedelics paired with therapy could ease cocaine dependency.
Hendricks said he explains that psilocybin is not considered to be addictive. Some participants, he said, “will tell me, ‘Look, this sounds kind of crazy, but I’ve tried everything at this point, so I’m willing to give it a try.’”
