Hallucinogens

Publications

Quick Facts

Online

Multimedia

Links

Events

General Information  

General

What are Hallucinogens?

Hallucinogens are drugs that cause hallucinations - profound distortions in a person's perceptions of reality. Under the influence of hallucinogens, people see images, hear sounds, and feel sensations that seem real but do not exist. Some hallucinogens also produce rapid, intense emotional swings.

Hallucinogens cause their effects by disrupting the interaction of nerve cells and the neurotransmitter serotonin. Distributed throughout the brain and spinal cord, the serotonin system is involved in the control of behavioral, perceptual, and regulatory systems, including mood, hunger, body temperature, sexual behavior, muscle control, and sensory perception.

LSD (an abbreviation of the German words for "lysergic acid diethylamide") is the drug most commonly identified with the term "hallucinogen" and the most widely used in this class of drugs. It is considered the typical hallucinogen, and the characteristics of its action and effects described in this Research Report apply to the other hallucinogens, including mescaline, psilocybin, and ibogaine.

Source: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. National Institute on Drug Abuse. (2002, February 21). NIDA Research Report: Hallucinogens and Dissociative DrugsWashington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office. Retrieved October 03, 2002 from the World Wide Web:http://www.drugabuse.gov/ResearchReports/Hallucinogens/halluc2.html

Statistics

The incidence of hallucinogen use has exhibited two notable periods of increase. Between 1965 and 1971, the number of initiates rose tenfold, from 90,000 to 900,000. The second period of increase began in 1990 when there were approximately 600,000 new users. By 2000, the number of initiates rose nearly threefold, to 1.5 million.

Initiation of Ecstasy (i.e., MDMA) use has been rising steadily since 1992 (Figure 5.2). The increase from 1.3 million new users in 1999 to 1.9 million in 2000 was statistically significant, as were the age-specific increases among 12 to 17 year olds and 18 to 25 year olds. The increase from 1998 to 1999 also was statistically significant, from 0.7 million to 1.3 million new users, as were the age-specific increases.

Source: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. (2002, September 4). Results from the 2001 National Household Survey on Drug Abuse: Volume I. Summary of National Findings (Office of Applied Studies, NHSDA Series H-17 ed.)  (BKD461, SMA 02-3758)Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office. Retrieved September 26, 2002 from the World Wide Web:http://www.oas.samhsa.gov/nhsda/2k1nhsda/vol1/chapter5.htm#5.hal