This is a OPEN AI summary of the Tim Ferriss Podcast #619- visit www.TinyTim.blog for more AI summaries, or www.Tim.blog for the official Tim Ferriss Podcasts.

Dr. Suresh Muthukumaraswamy is a researcher in the field of psychedelic drugs, and in this interview he discusses his work with psilocybin and LSD, as well as the differences between classical psychedelics and ketamine. He also talks about his experience with the Edmund Hillary Fellowship in New Zealand, and how it has helped him to make a meaningful impact in the country.

In this episode, Tim Ferriss talks about the infinite possibilities of studying mind-altering compounds. He discusses the potential benefits of these compounds, as well as the legal conditions surrounding their use.

The Edmund Hillary Fellowship (EHF) is a collective of entrepreneurs, scientists, storytellers, creatives, and investor changemakers who want to make an impact globally from Aotearoa, New Zealand. In this session today, you're going to hear from Tim Ferriss, he's an EHF fellow who's an early stage technology investor and advisor, and Tim will be interviewing Dr. Suresh, an associate professor at Auckland University. The topic today is on mental health and breakthrough therapeutics. There'll be plenty of time for Q&A with Tim and Suresh during the 90-minute session, but nearer the end.

Dr. Suresh Muthukumaraswamy is a researcher at the University of Auckland who is interested in understanding how therapies alter brain function and behavior. He has conducted clinical trials involving ketamines, scopolamine, and transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), and has received several grants to support his work, including a grant to investigate the effects of microdoses of LSD on brain and cognitive function. In this session, he discusses mental health and addiction statistics in New Zealand.

The percentage of adults experiencing psychological distress has more than doubled in the last 10 years, and is expected to continue rising due to the impact of COVID-19. Healthcare costs associated with mental health issues are high, and the personal costs are also significant.

Dr. Suresh Muthukumaraswamy has a background in general psychopharmacology and has studied a variety of drugs, including psychedelics. He is interested in the rapid antidepressant effects of scopolamine and has conducted research on the subject.

Ketamine is an anesthetic that does not suppress respiration, and is therefore widely used in medicine. In a study investigating ketamine's effects on depression, it was found that most of the antidepressant response seen was due to placebo.

Ketamine and classical psychedelics can both be described as having psychedelic effects, but they differ in how they work. Ketamine binds to an antagonist receptacle called the NMDA receptor, while classical psychedelics bind to the serotonin 2A receptor.

Brain cells communicate by strengthening synapses, and this process is important for learning and memory. Ketamine binds to various receptors in the brain, including GABA, opiate, serotonin, dopamine, and norepinephrine receptors. It also binds to HCN channels and sodium channels. Ketamine has a complex pharmacology, and its effects vary depending on the dose. Scientists are interested in studying ketamine because it has potential clinical applications, such as treating depression and anxiety.

Ketamine can be used to rapidly treat patients with treatment-resistant depression, with symptoms remitting within hours. This is due to ketamine causing a functional change in the brain that switches the patient from a depressed to a non-depressed state.

Ketamine is a drug that has been shown to rapidly improve depressive symptoms in some people. Its effects are usually short-lived, but there is some evidence that it can produce long-lasting changes in people's attitudes and perspectives.

The article discusses the differences between ketamine and psilocybin in terms of their effectiveness in treating depression. While ketamine can provide short-term relief, psilocybin seems to offer longer-term benefits. However, it is important to note that psilocybin is usually used in conjunction with intensive psychotherapy, which may play a role in its efficacy.

Ketamine-assisted psychotherapy is a new field of study that is investigating whether the benefits of ketamine can be extended beyond the two-week mark. Psilocybin-assisted therapy is another new field of study that is looking at whether the benefits of psilocybin can be extended beyond the two-week mark. Both of these studies are in their infancy, and more research is needed to determine whether either of these approaches is effective in the long term.

Dr. Suresh Muthukumaraswamy discusses his research on psychedelics, specifically microdosing of LSD. He explains that microdosing is taking a very low dose of a psychedelic drug, about 1/10th of a "trip" dose. Users report improved mental state and well-being after microdosing.

In 2011, James Fadiman popularized the idea of microdosing psychedelic substances every third day in order to improve well-being and concentration. Since then, the practice has taken off, with hundreds of thousands of people around the world engaging in microdosing. However, there is little clinical trial evidence to support the efficacy of microdosing, as it is difficult to conduct trials on schedule 1 substances. In New Zealand, however, there is legislation in place that allows for the prescription of schedule 1 substances, making it possible to conduct clinical trials on microdosing psychedelics.

This study gave 80 healthy volunteers a six-week LSD microdosing course, where they would take the first one in the laboratory. The other 13 doses were taken out in the wild. The study found that 100% of the doses were administered and video recorded by the participants and sent to the researchers. New Zealand's legislation allows for scientific and research innovation.

New Zealand has a strong regulatory environment that is agile and small, making it attractive for pharmaceutical companies to invest in clinical trials. The government takes a hands-off approach, which risks falling behind Australia.

Mental health research has been underfunded in New Zealand relative to the burden of disease that exists in the country. This means that when mental health researchers seek funding, they have to compete against researchers in other fields who may have more funding available.

There is an argument that New Zealand needs to specifically fund mental health research in order to address the disability that is seen in the population. Tim Ferriss asks if there is something equivalent to the FDA's breakthrough therapy designation in New Zealand, and Dr. Suresh Muthukumaraswamy says that there is not. He suggests that New Zealand could use some tools or approaches to further foster its already vibrant ecosystem.

New Zealand is a good place to pilot new drugs and medical studies because it is a small, English-speaking country with good research facilities.

New Zealand has a rich biomedical tradition, with strong research happening in areas like cancer, stroke recovery, and psychedelics. One scientist doing interesting work in the latter area is Paul Glues, who is researching ketamine and ketamine analogs. The metabolites of ketamine are also psychoactive, making it a more interesting compound to study.

Dr. Suresh Muthukumaraswamy discusses the potential for slow release ketamine formulations, which would allow for a more controlled psychedelic experience. He also notes that while Spravato is more expensive than generic ketamine, it is not necessarily more effective.

Ketamine is not indicated for depression, but is an off-label treatment. It is a controlled substance, so clinicians may be hesitant to prescribe it. However, ketamine may be effective for other internalizing disorders beyond just depression.

Psychedelics can be used to treat a variety of conditions, including OCD, anxiety, and addiction. The therapeutic wrapper (i.e. the combination of the patient, therapist, and psychedelic) is what determines the clinical outcome.

This passage discusses the difficulties associated with researching psychedelics, as well as the potential for future studies in the field. Dr. Suresh Muthukumaraswamy notes that due to the complicated nature of psychedelics, it will take time to figure out how to properly study them. He also highlights the importance of diagnosis in psychedelic research, as it is difficult to measure the effects of these substances in objective terms.

The speaker discusses the difficulties of researching the effects of psilocybin, due to the lack of understanding of the biology involved and the subjective nature of measuring responses. They note that each data point is valuable, as the experiments are complicated and require a lot of manpower.

This talk discusses the history of psychedelics and their common use for over 50 years. It is noted that in the United States, the reasons for their criminalization were mostly political, rather than scientific. It is also pointed out that psychedelics are relatively safe compared to other substances, and that the punishment for their use does not fit the crime. Finally, the importance of the recently-completed LSD microdosing study is emphasized.

This study looked at the effects of microdosing LSD in male volunteers. The researchers found that some people were more sensitive to the drug than others, and that the effects varied widely. They also found that it may be possible to use placebo controls in future studies.

This is a discussion between Tim Ferriss and Dr. Suresh Muthukumaraswamy about the challenges of conducting clinical trials on psychedelic drugs. Dr. Muthukumaraswamy notes that one of the biggest challenges is the lack of an effective placebo control, due to the fact that it is difficult to blind participants to whether or not they are receiving the active drug. Ferriss asks about potential active placebos that could be used, and Dr. Muthukumaraswamy notes that niacin is not a good option. He also says that what is important is not necessarily the compound itself, but what the participant believes they are receiving.

This person goes into a clinical trial thinking they will get psilocybin, and they do get psilocybin. They think it might make them better, but then they work out that they have actually had an active placebo, which could potentially be a problem.

Dr. Suresh Muthukumaraswamy discusses how mental health awareness has increased in recent years, but there is still more work to be done in terms of advocacy and support from government. He suggests that philanthropic support could help to accelerate progress in this area.

Microdosing appears to be safe in healthy populations, according to the limited data that exists. There is a potential risk for negative side effects in people with schizophrenia or bipolar disorder, but more research is needed.

Psychedelics can cause psychological distress and may not be a good idea for treating mental health disorders. There are also legal risks associated with schedule I compounds. It is important to be careful when using psychedelics.

Dr. Suresh Muthukumaraswamy and Tim Ferriss discuss the risks of microdosing without supervision. Dr. Muthukumaraswamy emphasizes the non-physiological risks, such as those associated with law enforcement, and the importance of knowing the purity and dosage of substances. Tim Ferriss adds that there are drug testing services available to help mitigate some of the risks. Michelle asks about open science and data sharing, and Dr. Muthukumaraswamy says it depends on the study.

Open science is the release of data to the world, and pre-registration is the publishing of clinical trial protocols before conducting the study. Open science is admirable, but it is not always possible, depending on who is funding the work. There is a big controversy around training pathways for psychologists and clinical social workers to become involved in psychedelic assisted psychotherapy. In the United States, a lot of eyes are on Oregon to see how they develop a parallel structure for training therapists in this area.

The use of psilocybin for therapeutic purposes is a live question in the state of Oregon. The Saisei Foundation is participating in a program to create a certification program for therapists to administer psilocybin-assisted therapies. This is a controversial issue because there are people who feel that the sacred is being secularized.

The use of psychedelics for therapy is still in the early stages, with ketamine and MDMA being the most promising. There is a risk of "boiling the ocean" by trying to legalize all psychedelics at once, which could lead to irresponsible use.

In the wake of the 50-year prohibition on psychedelics, experts are cautioning against rushing to make these drugs available for therapeutic use. While there is great potential for these drugs to help treat conditions like depression and addiction, care must be taken to ensure that they are safe and effective.

The researcher is discussing the possibility that lawmakers may attempt to ban psychedelics again if there are negative incidents associated with their use. They point out that this would be a bad thing for the culture, and that the community needs to be prepared for it.

The speaker discusses a project involving Maori-based intervention for methamphetamine and alcohol use. He mentions that they are in the early stages of planning and that the project includes elements of spirituality that would be interesting for researchers to explore. The speaker also notes that their previous LSD microdosing study only included males, but that all of their other studies have included females.

In this interview, Dr. Suresh Muthukumaraswamy discusses the potential benefits of psilocybin and other drugs for treating various disorders. He recommends studying medicine, psychology, or psychiatry if you want to be involved in this type of research. He also discusses the clinical trials of various public companies that are working on improving their drugs.

This person has consulted for companies developing generic medicines, and observes that they seem to be employing experienced pharmaceutical people who are doing a rigorous job. However, there are red flags in every area of pharmaceutical development, and it is not clear if there are more red flags in this area than in other parts of the pharmaceutical industry.

Patents can be problematic for ecosystems, especially if companies use them to monopolize a given molecule. Freedom to Operate is an organization that is worth checking out to stay informed about this issue.

619 https://tim.blog/2022/09/02/dr-suresh-muthukumaraswamy/