PATTERN OF USE AND SUBJECTIVE EFFECTS OF SALVIA DIVINORUM AMONG RECREATIONAL USERS

Demographic data and information on pattern of use and subjective effects of Salvia divinorum were obtained by means of self-report questionnaires from a sample of 32 recreational users of salvia and other psychedelics.

The study, led by Gonzalez D, Riba J, Bouso JC, Gomez-Jarabo G, Barbanoj MJ, researchers at Departamento de Psicologia Biologica y de la Salud, Facultad de Psicologia, Universidad Autonoma de Madrid, is published in PubMed.

Involvement with salvia appeared to be a recent phenomenon. Smoking the extract was the preferred form of administration.

Subjective effects were described as intense but short-lived, appearing in less than 1min and lasting 15min or less.

They included psychedelic-like changes in visual perception, mood and somatic sensations, and importantly, a highly modified perception of external reality and the self, leading to a decreased ability to interact with oneself or with one's surroundings.

Although some aspects of the subjective effects reported were similar to high doses of classical psychedelics with serotonin-2A receptor agonist activity, the intense derealization and impairment reported appear to be a characteristic of salvia.

The observed simultaneous high scores on the LSD and PCAG subscales of the Addiction Research Center Inventory (ARCI) have been previously reported for other kappa-opioid agonists, and support kappa receptor activation as the probable pharmacologic mechanism underlying the modified state of awareness induced by salvia.

Salvia divinorum is a member of the Lamiaceae family and contains the psychotropic diterpene and kappa-opioid receptor agonist salvinorin-A.

Originally a shamanic inebriant used by the Mexican Mazatec Indians, the plant and its preparations are becoming increasingly popular among non-traditional users.

Marco Mozzoni