In this episode of the Drug Science Podcast, world-renowned author Michael Pollan and Prof David Nutt discuss gardening. Of course, this being the Drug Science podcast, there’s no mention of sunflowers or strawberries. Instead, these two icons of psychopharmacology discuss the cultivation and everything else you might want to know about psychoactive plants with a particular focus on Opium, Caffeine and Mescaline. Michael Pollan, a contributing writer to The New York Times Magazine since 1987, Pr...
Aug 18, 2021•57 min•Ep. 43
This week’s episode features Doctor Sheila Vakharia and Professor Alex Stevens, together with Professor Nutt they will be talking about decriminalization and drug policies in the US and the UK. Has both countries’ drug policies arisen from colonialism and social class hierarchy? What are the consequences of the policies that can be witnessed today? Are there any reasons for drug criminalisation? Sheila P Vakharia, PhD is Deputy Director of the Department of Research and Academic Engagement for t...
Aug 04, 2021•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 42
Michael Mithoefer, MD is a Clinical Investigator and acting Medical Director of MAPS Public Benefit Corporation. Together with his wife Annie, they completed the first phase 2 clinical trial of MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for PTSD in 2009 and a subsequent study of MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for PTSD in military veterans, firefighters and police officers. They are now supervising therapists in the ongoing MAPS Phase 3 trials of MDMA-assisted Psychotheapy for PTSD, leading training in MDMA- assis...
Jul 21, 2021•51 min•Ep. 41
Today’s episode features Ollie Ollerton , a former UK Special Forces soldier and directing staff (DS) of Channel 4’s SAS: Who Dares Wins. Mr Ollerton has always been involved in the social cause, serving in the army as well as supporting multiple charities. Thanks to the publicity from SAS: Who Dares Wins he has been, among others, raising awareness of the mental health of soldiers. By the means of supporting Heroic Hearts charity he also advocates for the use of psychedelics such as ayahuasca f...
Jul 07, 2021•43 min•Ep. 40
Friederike Meckel is a German psychotherapist who also trained as a medical doctor. Her career involved multiple techniques in psychotherapy including Holotropic Breathwork, hypnotherapy and family constellation work. Most notably however, regarding the subject of our podcasts, by the means of setting a private underground practice in Zurich, Switzerland she developed her own way of psychotherapy using psychoactive substances. In this week’s episode, she describes the very innovative approaches ...
Jun 23, 2021•48 min•Ep. 39
Julia Buxton is British Academy Global Professor. Her research focuses on illicit drug markets and the impact of counter narcotics policies on development, gender equality and security. In her career she’s led projects and worked with multiple universities around the world including the Central European University in Budapest. Outside of Europe, she has geographical expertise on Latin America and is a specialist on Venezuela. Now, back in England, she’s working on The Global Drug Survey project,...
Jun 09, 2021•42 min•Ep. 38
Richard ‘Rick’ Doblin is the founder and director of Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS) - a non-profit research organisation established in 1986. Somewhere between getting an undergraduate degree in psychology and a doctorate in public policy, Rick, having had discovered psychedelics, began his fight against unjustified criminalisation of psychedelic drugs. Rick’s main goal has been making MDMA a FDA-approved medicine, tune in to this week’s episode to find out about hi...
May 26, 2021•51 min•Ep. 37
Together with Professor David Nutt they will be talking about the beauty behind psychoactive substances as well as the, equally interesting, stories from Lady Feilding’s life journey. Drug Science live podcast recording with Professor David Nutt! If you want to find out how to travel to Ceylon for 25 pounds do have a listen! Amanda Feilding is the Founder and Executive Director of the Beckley Foundation, and is widely recognised as a leading force behind the current Psychedelic Renaissance. By e...
May 12, 2021•55 min•Ep. 36
This week’s episode features Carl Hart, professor of neuroscience and psychology at Columbia University in New York. Professor Nutt and Professor Hart discuss drug addiction and its political context in the US. Are drug policies racist? Were they made to help or to harm? What does the declaration of independence has to do with drug criminalization? Coming from an impoverished area in Miami, Florida professor Hart used to believe drugs are the reason for problems he observed in his neighbourhood ...
Apr 28, 2021•37 min•Ep. 35
Robin Heads the Psychedelic Research Group within the Centre for Psychiatry at Imperial College London, where he has designed several functional brain imaging studies with psilocybin, LSD, MDMA and DMT, plus a clinical trial of psilocybin for treatment resistant depression. He has over 50 published papers in peer-reviewed scientific journals; two of which were ranked in the top 100 most impactful academic articles of 2016. Robin’s research has featured in major national and international media a...
Apr 14, 2021•46 min•Ep. 34
This week’s episode features Dr Gabor Maté, a Hungarian-Canadian physician who’s main interests include childhood development and trauma, and their impact on lifelong physical and mental health. Professor Nutt and Dr Maté talk about the inseparable nature of our body and mind. How do they affect each other? How can psychedelics offer therapeutic potential to both mental and physical conditions? Dr Gabor Maté was born in Hungary and emigrated to Canada as a young child. Following years of clinica...
Mar 31, 2021•45 min•Ep. 33
Peter Krykant previously used intravenous drugs whilst living homeless in Birmingham. His lived experience has shown him the benefits of drug consumption rooms; to prevent the spread of bloodborne diseases and protect people who use drugs from accidental overdose. Seven weeks ago, Peter set up the first UK drug consumption room which attracted the attention of the BBC and the local police force. Scotland's Lord Advocate and the Chief Constable of Police Scotland has made it clear that such activ...
Oct 13, 2020•42 min•Ep. 32
After discovering that there was very little literature review regarding the impact of psychedelics on the philosophy of the mind, philosopher Peter Sjöstedt-Hughes started to research how these drugs have impacted western philosophy. On this episode of the podcast, Peter examines the cultural history of the philosophy of psychedelics and how they’ve shaped philosophers’ perceptions of consciousness and reality. Dr Peter Sjöstedt-H is an Anglo-Scandinavian philosopher of mind who specializes in ...
Oct 06, 2020•49 min•Ep. 31
Psychologist Dr David Luke, is a Senior Lecturer studying states of transpersonal consciousness. It is well known that psychedelic drugs can induce altered states of consciousness but is this approach too heavy handed to derive benefit from a transpersonal experience? Activities such as yoga, meditation and sensory deprivation can induce this altered state of consciousness but how can we apply what we have learnt from psychedelic neuropsychopharmacology to evaluate these non-drug induced states?...
Sep 29, 2020•41 min•Ep. 30
In 1971, the war on drugs went international when the UN Convention on Psychotropic Substances was signed into international law. This Convention broadened the scope of previous UN drug legislation, facilitating the prohibition of almost any drug imaginable at the time. However, in the past 50 years, various countries across the world have been rejecting this narrative and even the UN itself has agreed that the war on drugs has been a failure. Drugs are here to stay and it was foolish to think t...
Sep 22, 2020•49 min•Ep. 29
Mobeen Azhar has been a journalist for 17 years investigating the societal harms related to the ‘war on drugs’. Upon returning to his hometown of Huddersfield, Mobeen started to uncover grizzly story behind the roadside execution of Yassar Yaqub. Described in court as a 28-year-old office clerk, Yassar Yaqub was shot dead by police on an M62 slip road on a cold and wet January evening in 2017. Celebrated by his family as a loving son and beloved father, his death lead to protests on the streets ...
Sep 15, 2020•53 min•Ep. 28
A special treat this week as the two titans of psychopharmacology discuss the medicinal chemistry of psychedelics. Dr Nichols is the Founding President of the Heffter Research Institute, an organisation designed to promote research of the highest scientific quality with psychedelics in order to contribute to a greater understanding of the mind leading to the improvement of the human condition, and to alleviate suffering. Professor Nutt and Dr Nichols answer some burning questions of psychedelic ...
Sep 08, 2020•44 min•Ep. 27
The US opioid crisis is a result of a fractured and fragmented healthcare service. Federal and state policy created a system whereby doctors were rewarded for prescribing highly addictive substances. This epidemic was compounded when the same federal and state government suddenly restrained these prescriptions, forcing people into the black market. Now underground drug dealers control this oversaturated demand, from Mexican smugglers to Chinese clandestine chemists…the harms of opiates are risin...
Sep 01, 2020•53 min•Ep. 26
Tobacco and alcohol are the largest sources of preventable death in the world. Our current treatments are only 15% effective at best. However, psilocybin-assisted therapy has achieved an astonishing 80% success rate in clinical trials. Professor Matthew Johnson is paving the way for this new an innovative treatment to address one of the most damaging social burdens of modern society, drug addiction. It is important to note that Professor Johnson’s research is not looking at casual habitual smoke...
Aug 25, 2020•52 min•Ep. 25
This week, Professor Nutt speaks to journalist Johann Hari @johannhari101 about the ‘war on drugs’. It is now widely accepted that the ‘war on drugs’ has failed, with many people believing it can never succeed. Despite this, politicians from around the world continue to follow this mantra as an effective strategy to reduce drug-related harms. The reason why… politics. Currently, it is politically damaging to support the legalisation of drugs because public discourse has been led to believe that ...
Aug 18, 2020•54 min•Ep. 24
The tables have been turned in this one-off special of the Drug Science podcast. In this episode, Professor David Nutt is interviewed by renowned singer-songwriter – Joss Stone. Professor Nutt is the Chair of the Drug Science Scientific Committee and currently the Edmund J Safra Professor of Neuropsychopharmacology and Head of the Neuropsychopharmacology Unit at Imperial College London. Professor Nutt has steered the psychedelic renaissance toward legitimate research in the UK enabling the next ...
Aug 11, 2020•40 min•Ep. 23
On July 14th 2020, the UK’s leading independent scientific body on drugs has launched the Drug Science Medical Psychedelics Working Group. Building off the success of the Medical Cannabis Working Group , the Medical Psychedelics Working Group is a consortium of Drug Science experts, leading academics, researchers and policy specialists, supported by industry partners. The group’s aim is to create a rational and enlightened approach to psychedelic research and clinical treatment. The group will e...
Aug 04, 2020•49 min•Ep. 22
In this episode of the Drug Science podcast, Professor Nutt is joined by an old friend who he has known for 35 years. Professor Roland Griffiths is a researcher who has examined a wide range of psychotropic substances through the years. He has studied, the abuse potential of a number of different substances; caffeine dependence and withdrawal, and the relative prices people are willing to pay for access to common street drugs. Roland Griffiths, is a Professor in the Departments of Psychiatry and...
Jul 28, 2020•47 min•Ep. 21
In this episode of the Drug Science podcast, Professor David Nutt is joined by two pharmacosexuality experts to discuss chemsex, drug fuelled sex parties and sexual psychonauts. From the peak sexual experience to sober sex, our relationship with sex and drugs is complicated but intrinsically personal. Find out who chooses to mix sex and drugs, the risks associated with doing so, and what pleasure this provides people who combine the two. Dr Alex Dymock (@alexdymock) is Lecturer in Law at Goldsmi...
Jul 21, 2020•30 min•Ep. 20
DMT is a drug that’s relatively novel in western neuropsychopharmacology. Not much research has been done on this substance to date and many intoxicants are unable to recount their psychedelic experience. For the first time, this substance is being studied in an fMRI and EEG to elucidate why and how this drug elucidates vivid dreams and near-death experiences. Chris Timmerman recently completed his PhD in neuropsychopharmacology at Imperial College London, investigating the effects of psychedeli...
Jul 14, 2020•36 min•Ep. 19
Crispin was elected MP for Reigate in 1997 having formerly served as an army officer. In Parliament, Crispin has served in the Shadow Cabinet with briefs including trade and energy and security and counter-terrorism. He has served as both Minister for Prisons and as Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee. He is currently the co-Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Drug Policy Reform. In January 2019, Crispin set up and launched the Conservative Drug Policy Reform Group (CDPRG) whose ...
Jul 07, 2020•40 min•Ep. 18
From an early age, Mitch Schultz's curiosity of the unknown universe forged his path in storytelling. His work as a transmedia producer, UX designer, and educator explores the inherent connections among consciousness, nature, culture, and the evolving human mythology. The Documentary ‘From Shock to Awe’ asks, “ how do we heal our deepest wounds ?”. This film offers an intimate and raw look at the transformational journey of two combat veterans suffering from severe trauma as they abandon pharmac...
Jun 30, 2020•33 min•Ep. 17
War continues to hurt people long after the fighting has stopped. Veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress often self-medicate with alcohol or they are prescribed a cocktail of anti-depressants and opioids. This story is far too common for Nathan Pohl, A US veteran who served 2000 days of deployment in multiple combat zones. Nathan was not given the support he needed when he returned home, but luckily, he was introduced to the healing power of plant-based medicines before it was too late. D...
Jun 29, 2020•35 min•Ep. 16
This episode of the Drug Science podcast offers a unique insight into the personal accounts of veterans Jesse Gould and Keith Abrahams. From the Afghan war zone to the Peruvian Jungle, these two have dedicated themselves to helping support their fellow brothers and sisters in arms. After being deployed in Afghanistan three times, Jesse Gould founded the Heroic Hearts Project in 2017 to spearhead the acceptance and use of ayahuasca therapy as a means of addressing the current mental health crisis...
Jun 27, 2020•43 min•Ep. 15
Mescaline is one of the lesser used psychedelics of the 21st century, however, its use may be older than any other psychedelic drug we know of. In this episode of the Drug Science podcast, Mike Jay recounts the definitive history of mescaline, exploring its mind-altering effects across cultures, from ancient America to western modernity. Mike Jay is a writer and curator who has written widely on the history of drugs. He is the author of High Society: mind-altering drugs in history and culture, w...
Jun 23, 2020•37 min•Ep. 14
