This page respects the original work's rights terms and independently introduces its bibliography, abstract, main results, and limitations. It is not a full translation.
About this resource
This page introduces a 2026 systematic review that collected prospective studies assessing mental- and physical-health measures over time before and after ayahuasca use. The authors included 18 studies, most of which were naturalistic studies following people who had chosen to attend retreats or ceremonies. It was not a review limited to randomized trials.
Study design
The review included studies with baseline measurements before use and follow-up assessments afterward. Mental and behavioral measures included depression, well-being, substance use, cognitive flexibility, personality, and prosocial behavior. Because populations, brews, support settings, follow-up periods, and measures differed substantially, the review was structured to examine the distribution and consistency of studies rather than reach a conclusion from a single pooled effect size.
Content
Several studies reported post-use changes in measures of depression, well-being, and substance use, while others addressed cognitive flexibility, prosociality, and related outcomes. Cases reporting persistent psychiatric difficulties were also included in the review. The authors considered both apparently beneficial changes and adverse trajectories, without equating the self-reports of self-selected participants with medical effects.
A particularly important gap concerns physical health. The authors reported finding no prospective studies focused on physical diseases. Studies that measure heart rate, blood pressure, or acute physiological responses do not thereby prospectively test whether chronic disease or physical condition improves.
Results
Overall, the review characterizes the evidence as preliminary even though favorable changes have been reported in some mental-health and behavioral measures. In naturalistic studies, participant motivation, expectations, community, travel, sleep, diet, support, and other practices may change at the same time, so causation cannot be attributed solely to ayahuasca’s pharmacological effects.
The paper’s value lies not only in organizing what has been shown, but also in identifying what remains unexamined. It clarifies that prospective evidence corresponding to claims about physical health is scarce and that standardized reporting and long-term follow-up are needed.
Limitations
Many included studies were small, uncontrolled, and naturalistic, and participants had chosen to take part. Attrition, self-report, expectations, multiple simultaneous interventions, and brews with unknown or variable composition may distort findings. Heterogeneity is high, so observations from a particular population, preparation, or setting cannot be extended to ayahuasca in general.
A review limited to published research may also be affected by publication bias, because studies finding no change or adverse results may be less likely to appear. Even a recent review does not automatically resolve weaknesses in the designs of its underlying studies.
Safety
Active adverse-event ascertainment and long-term follow-up are needed to assess whether psychological difficulties are temporary or persistent and how they relate to prior history or concomitant medications. Pregnancy, cardiovascular disease, psychotic disorders, bipolar disorder, and interactions with monoaminergic drugs cannot be evaluated from average benefit measures alone.
Source and rights
Original source: Haupt MJ, Carra S, Boehnke KF, Aday JS. Preliminary effects of ayahuasca on mental and physical health: A systematic review of prospective studies. Progress in Neuro-Psychopharmacology and Biological Psychiatry. 2026;145:111634. DOI: 10.1016/j.pnpbp.2026.111634.
This page is a detailed introduction based on bibliographic information and the publicly available abstract; it is not a translation or republication of the copyrighted article. Consult the publisher’s original for methods and individual results.