A Chronic Impairment of Colour Vision in Users of LSD
The British Journal of Psychiatry – May 01, 1982
Source: OpenAlex
Summary
LSD users demonstrated notable impairments in color discrimination, with 46 users scoring lower than 31 controls. Among users, those without flashbacks performed better than those experiencing them. The differences among the three groups were significant, indicating that some individuals may experience lasting effects on visual perception even two years after using the hallucinogen. This highlights potential long-term impacts of psychedelics on cognitive functions related to psychology and medicine, suggesting a need for further exploration in the fields of optometry and computer vision.
Abstract
Summary Forty-six users of the hallucinogen lysergic acid diethylamide were compared with 31 controls on a test of colour discrimination an average of two years after their last exposure to the drug. Controls performed better than users, and LSD users without flashbacks performed better than users with flashbacks. An analysis of variance between the three groups was significant at P <0.001. This study suggests that some users of LSD may have a sustained or irreversible impairment in colour discrimination.