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No Clear Benefit for Psychedelic Therapy

A review of 24 studies found similar depression outcomes, suggesting apparent psychedelic benefits may reflect expectancy effects and weaker placebo responses 

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  • 1

    Systematic review involved 24 studies.

  • 2

    Analyzed 8 psychedelic trials with 249 patients.

  • 3

    Compared with 16 open-label antidepressant trials (7,921 patients).

  • 4

    Found small improvement favoring antidepressants, below clinical significance.

  • 5

    Addressed challenge of functional unblinding in psychedelic research.

  • 6

    No meaningful difference between blinded and open-label psychedelic trials.

  • 7

    Results encourage cautious interpretation of prior findings on psychedelics.

Original Source(s)

No Clear Benefit for Psychedelic Therapy

  • by Henry Thomas

  • March 23, 2026

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