Effect of Peyote on Human Chromosomes
JAMA October 20, 1975 David Dorrance 20 citations
Lifelong and multigenerational ingestion of peyote, a mescaline-containing cactus with hallucinogenic properties, is not associated with abnormalities in lymphocyte chromosomes. Fifty-seven Huichol Indians with a personal and 1,600-year cultural tradition of peyote use were compared with 50 Huichol Indian controls and ten laboratory controls. The frequency of chromosomal abnormalities did not differ significantly between the experimental and control groups, indicating no detectable genetic damage from this traditional practice.