Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs
July 1, 2020
Ilana Berlowitz, Heinrich Walt, Christian Ghasarian et al.
19 citations
The Amazonian medicine-based therapy attracts a diverse group of patients, including those from outside the region, and may be especially appealing to individuals with substance use disorders (SUD) who have a history of unsuccessful treatment. The cultural diversity of the sample indicates international interest in such therapies among SUD treatment-seeking patients. These findings are relevant to the need for improved SUD therapies and add to the growing research on ayahuasca-based treatments.
Cultura y Droga
July 3, 2018
Matteo Politi, Fabio Friso, Jacques Mabit
19 citations
Several American treatment centers use traditional herbal medicines or their derivatives to address substance dependence. Psychoactive plants that induce modified states of consciousness—Ayahuasca, Coca, Wachuma, Tobacco, Psilocybe mushrooms, Salvia divinorum, and Peyote—are particularly relevant. Plant-based assisted therapy for substance use disorders is a promising research field, but clinical outcome validation needs improvement for most cases examined.
Psychotropes
January 1, 2001
Jacques Mabit
6 citations
In contrast to the clumsiness with which Westerners induce modifications of their consciousness, ancestral medicines respond with highly sophisticated know-how where the controlled induction of non-ordinary states of consciousness is not only harmless but also helps address the modern development of drug addiction. Drawing on clinical experience in the Peruvian Upper Amazon, the author testifies to the therapeutic resources found in the wise use of medicinal plants, including non-addictive psychotropic ones like the famous ayahuasca vine.
Cultura y Droga
July 1, 2019
Matteo Polit, Fabio Friso, Jacques Mabit
4 citations
The boundaries between viewing drug consumption as a crime versus a health issue may be overcome by drawing on ancient wisdom from traditional medicines. This article surveys treatment centers worldwide that use plant- or animal-derived substances for substance use disorders, including psychoactive derivatives of Tabernanthe iboga and Bufo alvarius. Drawing on scientific literature, information exchanges, internet searches, and the authors' personal experience, the article reflects on how the same substance can be considered a medicine or a toxicant depending on cultural context, policy, and use.
Journal of psychoactive drugs
January 15, 2026
Laura Monteagudo-Romero, Isotta Triulzi, Tommaso Dondoli et al.
A plant called chiric sanango (Brunfelsia grandiflora), used in traditional Amazonian medicine, may aid addiction recovery and mental health by inducing physical sensations like numbness, tingling, dizziness, and cold, alongside deep psychological introspection and emotional processing. Analysis of 74 case reports from the Takiwasi Center in Peru showed that patients often moved from distressing emotions to states of clarity, acceptance, and resilience, with enhanced social engagement. The findings suggest chiric sanango could be a useful adjunct in psychotherapy and addiction treatment, highlighting the need for further research into its psychoactive properties.
Cultura y Droga
January 2, 2018
Jacques Mabit
While Peru built the magnificent Inca civilization through the wisdom provided by the coca leaf, it later became the primary producer of toxic derivatives of this desecrated plant. Today, the coca leaf again enables treatment of cocaine addiction, as demonstrated by the experience of the Takiwasi Center. Likewise, the healing use of Ayahuasca was discovered a few decades ago and quickly spread explosively worldwide. The accelerated desacralization of this medicine may reach the same extremes as the misuse of coca; the path followed with coca offers lessons for the use of Ayahuasca; the use of coca in the West responded to certain factors, and the use of Ayahuasca today responds to others.