A short while ago, we posted an article here on Dutch-Smart about a possible ban on the wildly popular drink ayahuasca. About a month later, after years of back-and-forth, the decision was finally made: ayahuasca is now completely banned in the Netherlands—including for various religious communities that, until now, were still permitted to serve ayahuasca to their congregants. Please note: we are referring here to the drink itself, and not to the plants commonly used to make ayahuasca—these are, in fact, completely legal in the Netherlands.
Ayahuasca Banned
The hallucinogenic brew was completely banned by the court in October. The Supreme Court ruled that the importation of ayahuasca is a criminal offense, thereby upholding a previous conviction of a woman. She was punished for importing no less than 33 kilograms of ayahuasca tea. The woman herself believed that her conviction violated her freedom of religion because the tea was intended for the Santo Daime church in Amsterdam, to be used in religious services. Earlier, in 1999, the Public Prosecution Service had already prosecuted the congregation for “the transport, use, and possession of ayahuasca,” but the congregation received support from the court in 2001, which cited the religious context of its use. According to the Supreme Court, however, there would be an “unacceptable danger to public health” due to “a rapidly growing interest in the use of ayahuasca, particularly outside of religious settings.”
Ayahuasca is—as most of you Dutch-Smarters probably know—a psychedelic drink made from two plants: an MAO-inhibiting plant such as Banisteriopsis Caapi, and a DMT-containing plant such as Chaliponga or Chacruna. Dimethyltryptamine, or simply DMT, is an illegal substance classified as a hard drug. The drink has been used for many years, both domestically and abroad, to alleviate a wide range of symptoms associated with psychological problems. Recent studies suggest that the substance may be effective in treating depression and anxiety, but at the same time, others warn that it can be dangerous for people who, for example, already suffer from psychosis.
Psilohuasca: the creative solution
The ban on ayahuasca (note: the plants themselves are not banned in the Netherlands) has led many providers of ayahuasca ceremonies in the Netherlands to alter their offerings. The NRC conducted an investigation and approached twelve providers of these ceremonies. Seven of them did not respond to the newspaper’s questions, one says they will continue to offer ayahuasca, and four gave a surprising answer. They have, in fact, completely switched to psilohuasca. “It works just as well as ayahuasca, although the experience is slightly different,” says one of the ceremony leaders in question.
But what exactly is psilohuasca? Well, first of all, it’s good to know that it’s nothing new, but that it does seem to be filling the gap that has emerged—and with success. Psilohuasca is a combination of psilocybin, derived from magic mushrooms or truffles, and an MAO inhibitor. The MAO inhibitor ensures that psilocybin and psilocin are broken down more slowly. So when you compare this to ayahuasca, the difference is that the DMT has been replaced by psilocybin, another very powerful hallucinogen. “Truffles are more predictable and stable. But that’s actually a bad thing for users, which is why we combine them with MAO inhibitors,” says the ceremony leader.
As always: be careful
According to Leonie Kamps, spokesperson for the Trimbos Institute, the effects of psilohuasca are comparable to those of ayahuasca. “The effect of adding MAO inhibitors to truffles is that you can trip longer and more intensely than on truffles alone.” However, she immediately adds a caveat: you should never take MAO inhibitors if you’re on antidepressants. “This can lead to life-threatening symptoms. Both substances become much stronger, and you can develop serotonin syndrome. You’ll start sweating and your body temperature will rise, which can even cause organs to fail.”
What does Dutch-Smart think of psilohuasca? We haven’t quite made up our minds yet. We do believe, however, that psilocybin on its own is already quite extraordinary. So you actually don’t need MAO inhibitors at all to benefit from the active compounds in magic mushrooms or magic truffles, whereas this is the case with DMT if you want to consume it orally.
