A psychedelic drug research lab in Nanaimo is growing after its federal licence was amended to study several additional substances. (Pixabay)

By Ian Holmes

mental health

Nanaimo lab expands amid growth in psychedelic therapy research

Mar 22, 2021 | 5:26 AM

NANAIMO — A psychedelic drug research lab in Nanaimo is expanding with the goal of improving mental health treatments in Canada and abroad.

Vancouver-based firm Numinus Wellness inc. recently announced expansion plans valued at $1.2 million for new equipment at its Nanaimo facility.

Sharan Sidhu, science officer and general manager of Numinus’ lab division, told NanaimoNewsNOW eight additional staff are being recruited to Nanaimo, where the company recently received federal approval to research several other psychedelics, including ketamine and LSD.

“The more research we do, the more work we do, the more compounds we now have licensed, the more scientists and ancillary staff we need to facilitate all of that,” Sidhu said.

Plants and mushrooms have a long history in traditional healing, according to Sidhu, who cited the historic central American Mayan culture where anxiety treatments were a priority.

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“It’s really interesting to see how now we are treating physical ailments before we’re treating any kind of mental anxiety that goes along with being sick,” Sidhu said.

She said the Nanaimo operation is devoted to studying potential depression-fighting benefits from psychedelic components in magic mushrooms.

While use of psychedelic drugs as a form of mental health therapy is not approved in Canada and the United States, mounting research and promising clinical trials caught the attention of North American law makers.

Last year in Canada the first ever exemptions were made for psilocybin, found in magic mushrooms, to be used by four patients with terminal illnesses to ease their anxiety.

Health Canada recently granted permission to allow 16 health professionals to use magic mushrooms to help create therapies.

Dr. Evan Wood, chief medical officer of Numinus Wellness, said ongoing stage three clinical trials by the U.S. non-profit organization Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS) showed compelling results of the upside psychedelic properties in MDMA had on severe PTSD patients.

He said psychedelic experiences from MDMA vastly reversed symptoms for mentally devastated subjects, including war veterans and first responders so traumatized from panic attacks they couldn’t leave their homes.

“We don’t have good treatments for that,” Dr. Wood said. “In the MAPS’ trials they found that about 70 per cent of people no longer met the symptom requirement of PTSD, essentially cured of PTSD,” Dr. Wood said, who noted psychedelic therapies are also studied for certain substance use disorders.

Dr. Wood said psychedelic research slowed down for decades due to the illegal nature of the drugs and cultural stigmatization.

While stressing the use of psychedelics needs to be tightly controlled, Dr. Wood said society wants to learn more about how the drugs can benefit people and society.

“We’ve reached the tipping point where the evidence is so compelling…I really think that this isn’t going to face the same cultural headwinds that medical marijuana did or the legalization of marijuana.”

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ian@nanaimonewsnow.com
on Twitter: @reporterholmes