Are Psychedelics The Future Of Weight Loss?

21 Nov Are Psychedelics The Future Of Weight Loss?

Posted at 09:29h in Weight Loss by

Recent research has found that psychedelics could help weight loss. In particular psilocybin, the psychedelic compound found in magic mushrooms.

Much research is being conducted into psychedelic plant medicines for the treatment of mental health issues like anxiety and depression. Now researchers have turned their attention to whether psychedelics could help tackle obesity.

HOW COULD PSYCHEDELICS HELP WEIGHT LOSS?

It’s understood that psychedelics reduce activity in the brain’s default mode network. This is a network of habitual pathways that communicate between brain regions.

We tend to default to the tracks that have been built up over time, making it harder to take any path other than the ones already established. It’s understood that the default mode network is overactive in conditions including depression, anxiety, and OCD.

By reducing default mode network activity, psychedelics may allow for a break from deeply ingrained psychological patterns. They may act to increase brain neuroplasticity, creativity and allow for the setting of new tracks.

When we work with clients, an important part of our work is focussed on the behavioural change aspect of our client’s relationship with food. Defaulting to deeply ingrained, unsupportive habits around food can sabotage weight loss as well as long term weight maintenance.

Psychedelics have the potential to support weight loss by providing a way to enhance the process of behaviour change through their impact on the default mode network.

ARE PSYCHEDELICS SAFE?

Any drug poses a certain amount of risk, but the risks of psychedelics may be less than you expect.

Professor David Nutt is an English neuropsychopharmacologist specialising in the research of drugs. He was formerly an advisor to the government and held a position position in the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs.

In 2007, Professor Nutt published a study in The Lancet titled Drug harms in the UK: a multicriteria decision analysis. It looked at the most commonly used drugs and the harm they cause to individual users and to society. Each drug was scored; the higher the score, the more damaging the drug.

Alcohol rated highest with a score of 72. Heroin and crack cocaine followed with scores of 55 and 54 retrospectively. Mushrooms? They scored a 6, right at the bottom of the scale. LSD scored 7.

Boris Johnson has said he will examine the latest advice on the legalisation of psilocybin after Tory MP Crispin Blunt urged the PM to review the law to allow more research into the drug’s therapeutic qualities.

IMPORTANT CONSIDERATIONS

Psychedelics are currently illegal in the UK. I personally hope that this will change in time, as is happening in other countries where legalisation is occurring.

However, there are countries where the use of plant medicines are legal and an important part of indigenous culture. You may have heard of people travelling to Peru to do ayahauscha or to Mexico for psilocybin (mushroom) retreats. Closer to the UK we have organisations like Synthesis offering offering legal, medically supervised psychedelic retreats in Amsterdam.

The benefits of psychedelic plant medicines are profound and extend far beyond their potential for weight loss and mental health issues. But they must be approached with great care and respect. If you feel called to plant medicines, I would strongly recommend that you do your research and find a reputable, experienced provider who can support you not only during your ceremony or treatment, but also with integration afterwards.

The work you do before and particularly after the ‘trip’ itself are vital. Integration is the process of taking what you have learned or experienced during the trip and integrating it into your life in a beneficial way.

MY THOUGHTS

I have personally experienced the profound transformations that can result from psychedelic plant medicines. There is so much more to psychedelics than the ‘frightening-trip-inducing drugs’ story we have been sold.

Growing evidence suggests that psychedelics hold huge potential for helping to address many of the health and wellbeing challenges we are struggling with as a society today, including depression and anxiety.

I have been in a plant medicine ceremony with someone who had been struggling with bulimia for decades. In that one night she felt that she released her eating disorder and believes she is cured. It’s been over a year now since the ceremony and she has not once experienced the desire to purge after eating.

I am particularly excited about the research into how psychedelics could help people develop healthier relationships with food and their body.

FURTHER READING (AND WATCHING)

If you’re interested in taking a deep dive into this fascinating subject, I can highly recommend reading (or listening to) Michael Pollan’s book, How To Change Your Mind: The New Science Of Psychedelics.

There are also documentaries and TV shows to explore including:

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LINDA ROBINSON

Linda is our Practice Coordinator, helping to keep the clinic running smoothly.

 

Originally from Texas, Linda completed her MBA at SDA Bocconi in Milan. Linda has worked as a Strategy Consultant across multiple industries globally in cities including Kyoto, Paris, Chicago and San Francisco. She developed an interest in nutrition whilst volunteering for an organisation that provides cooking and nutrition education to children and families.

Linda is now settled in London with her husband, two children, and her very bouncy, sociable dog.

SARAH LAW

Sarah has worked with hundreds of clients over the past decade to help them live in a healthy body that they feel confident in.


Sarah spent a large part of her teens and 20’s as a professional dancer battling with orthorexia and an unhealthy relationship with food and her body. This created a desire to understand the human body more so she could finally cut through the confusion and end the cycle of yoyo dieting. This fuelled her passion to help other women do the same.

 

Sarah specialises in supporting women who are struggling to lose weight due to underlying health issues. She’s helped many women manage their weight during and after the menopause, as well as clients with thyroid disease and immune system dysfunction. Sarah loves food and sharing healthy recipes with her clients. Her aim is to ensure that clients don’t feel deprived and instead, achieve their weight loss and health goals in a positive and sustainable way.

 

To enquire about working with Sarah, please contact us.

AILSA HICHENS

 

Ailsa is one of our most experienced practitioners. She specialises in helping clients to lose weight, develop a healthy relationship with food and finally feel comfortable in their skin. Ailsa’s mission is for everyone she works with to enjoy the journey and that working with a nutritionist should not be a punishment, but your access to a new possibility.

 

Ailsa is not only an experienced weight loss nutritionist, she is also a skilled coach. She helps our clients overcome emotional eating, destructive habits and self-sabotaging behaviours that have prevented successful weight loss in the past. Ailsa has spent years in clinic working with clients who have experienced yo-yo dieting and have discovered that long term weight loss is not just about eating less until you can stand it no longer.

 

Working with Ailsa you will be comprehensively supported, not only in improving your nutrition and lifestyle, but also your eating habits and your relationship with food. When you work on all these elements together, the results can be truly astonishing.

 

To enquire about working with Ailsa, please contact us.

Test Nikki is our Practice Manager, managing our team of practitioners and heading up the day-to-day running of the business. Nikki is involved in the strategic development of our practice, coming from a strong business background in town planning. A Florida girl, Nikki relocated to the UK in 2014 with her husband and two children.

NIKKI ANDRIANI

Nikki is our Practice Manager, managing our team and heading up the day-to-day running of our clinic.

 

Coming from a background in town planning, Nikki is involved in the strategic development of our practice, continually ensuring we are delivering the very best service to our clients.


A Florida girl, Nikki relocated to the UK in 2014 where she lives with her husband, two children, and her rescue dog Skyy.

STÉPHANIE ACHAR

Stéphanie is a skilled nutritional therapist and functional medicine practitioner with additional training in eating disorders, disordered eating and obesity. She believes that working towards both physiological and mental health is key in achieving optimum wellbeing.

 

Stéphanie’s personal experience of emotional eating and the ongoing struggle to find the right support led her to combine the science of nutrition with behavioural coaching to motivate and empower her clients. She specialises in helping people who struggle with their weight and their relationship with food. She helps them develop a healthier and more peaceful relationship with food and their bodies.

 

To enquire about working with Stéphanie, please contact us.

INNA WEARN

Inna is passionate about supporting women on their journey to improved health and wellbeing. She believes that the solution to effective weight loss does not lie in ever more restrictive diets, but a more sophisticated approach that optimises health and vitality, as well as promoting effective weight loss.

 

Working with Inna you will benefit from her in-depth knowledge of female health and hormones. She will support you in developing a healthy diet, lifestyle and mindset that ensures you reach your ideal weight and maintain it in the years to come.

 

Inna is passionate about food with a wide repertoire of delicious healthy recipes and meal ideas to ensure your weight loss journey is as enjoyable as possible!

 

To enquire about working with Inna, please contact us.

ANIA MASON

 

Ania is a firm believer that improving your health and losing weight should be a positive, empowering journey, not one centred around deprivation.

 

After being diagnosed with two autoimmune conditions in her twenties, Ania spent several years educating herself on the power of food and nutrition. She put it all into practise and changed her diet and lifestyle, reversing her endometriosis and thyroid disease. After experiencing such a significant improvement in her health, Ania had a big desire to help others. She embarked on a four year journey to study nutrition, graduating from the Institute for Optimum Nutrition with distinction.

 

Ania specialises in autoimmunity and works with clients who have underlying health issues preventing successful weight loss. Her expertise enables her to successfully support our clients with conditions such as hypothyroidsm (underactive thyroid), PCOS and diabetes. 

 

To enquire about working with Ania, please contact us.

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