Hallucinogen use among young adults ages 19-30 in the United States: Changes from 2018 to 2021.
Level 3 - non-randomized controlled study
Longitudinal cohort study of US young adults
PubMed 37287110 · doi:10.1111/add.16259
What was done
This was a longitudinal cohort study assessing hallucinogen use among 11,304 unique US young adults aged 19–30 years surveyed between 2018 and 2021 (mean follow-ups 1.46, standard deviation = 0.50; 51.9% of observed data points among females). The authors examined self-reported past-12-month use and frequency of lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) and non-LSD hallucinogens (e.g., psilocybin, PCP), overall and across demographic subgroups.
What was found
Past-12-month LSD use remained relatively unchanged between 2018 (3.7%, 95% CI = 3.1–4.3) and 2021 (4.2%, 95% CI = 3.4–5.0). In contrast, non-LSD hallucinogen use doubled from 3.4% (95% CI = 2.8–4.1) in 2018 to 6.6% (95% CI = 5.5–7.6) in 2021. Non-LSD use was higher in males (OR = 1.86, 95% CI = 1.52–2.26) and lower in Black compared with White participants (OR = 0.29, 95% CI = 0.19–0.47) and participants without a college-educated parent (OR = 0.80, 95% CI = 0.64–0.99). Similar demographic disparities were reported for LSD.
Why it matters
This study documents a rapid, selective increase in non-LSD hallucinogen consumption among US young adults up to 2021, concentrated among male, White, and higher socioeconomic status populations.
Limits
Data relied entirely on self-reported substance use, which is susceptible to recall and social desirability biases. Non-LSD hallucinogens were aggregated into a single category (combining distinct substances such as psilocybin and PCP). Motives for use (therapeutic vs. recreational), dosing, and clinical outcomes were not reported.
Cited by
- context Psychedelic use in the population has increased by 40% since the release of Michael Pollan's book.