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2019 to 2023 Saw Increase in Prevalence of Psilocybin Use in the United States

Medically reviewed by Carmen Pope, BPharm. Last updated on April 29, 2025.

By Elana Gotkine HealthDay Reporter

TUESDAY, April 29, 2025 -- The prevalence of lifetime and past-year use of psilocybin increased from 2019 to 2023 among all age groups in the United States, according to a study published online April 22 in the Annals of Internal Medicine.

Karilynn M. Rockhill, Ph.D., M.P.H., from Denver Health and Hospital Authority, and colleagues quantified changes in prevalence and health care utilization of psilocybin users between 2014 and 2023 in a study using five nationally representative datasets.

The researchers found that before 2019, psilocybin use was relatively stable across datasets. Among adults (aged 18 years and older), lifetime use increased from 10.0 to 12.1 percent from 2019 to 2023 (25 to 31 million in the National Survey on Drug Use and Health dataset). Among adolescents aged 12 to 17 years, lifetime use increased from 1.1 to 1.3 percent from 2019 to 2023 (from 285,000 to 344,000 in the National Survey on Drug Use and Health dataset). Past-year psilocybin use increased 44 and 188 percent among young adults (18 to 29 years) and older adults (30 years and older), respectively, from 2019. The prevalence of past-year use was 2.1 percent among all adults in 2023, but varied by age group, ranging from 3.5 percent among young adults to 1.8 percent among older adults. Compared with nonusers, adults who used psilocybin in 2023 were younger and more likely to be male.

"Psilocybin use in the United States is increasing, and public health and health care professionals should consider these rising rates in policy and intervention development," the authors write.

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Disclaimer: Statistical data in medical articles provide general trends and do not pertain to individuals. Individual factors can vary greatly. Always seek personalized medical advice for individual healthcare decisions.

© 2025 HealthDay. All rights reserved.

Posted April 2025

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