Study Finds 65% Of Americans With Mental Health Conditions Want Access To Psychedelics

A new study conducted by The Harris Poll and Delic Holdings Corp found that 65% of affected Americans want access to psychedelics for mental health.

Respondents who self-reported that they suffer from a mental health condition say that psychedelic medicine including ketamine, psilocybin mushrooms, and MDMA, should be made available to patients with treatment-resistant anxiety, depression, or PTSD.

“The pandemic has skyrocketed the need for psychedelic wellness,” says Delic CEO Matt Stang. “We’re at a tipping point where the data and science regarding psychedelic therapies have become undeniable in treating a variety of serious conditions.”

As it stands, ketamine is legal in the U.S. for medical use. Ketamine is an FDA-approved anesthetic and can be prescribed for a myriad of ailments in a regulated setting by licensed clinicians. Psilocybin, like cannabis, is still considered a Schedule 1 drug in the eyes of the federal government. Therefore, its sale and use is illegal, despite some states and cities that have begun to decriminalize mushrooms. Beginning in 2019, psilocybin has been decriminalized in Denver, Oregon, and Santa Cruz. The state of California even has a measure on the 2022 ballot that would decriminalize psychedelic medicine in the state.

Psychedelic wellness companies like Delic are eager for this legal movement. It echoes the beginning of the weed industry we know today, as states began decriminalizing prior to legalization several decades ago. The largest clinical study to date affirms psilocybin’s efficacy in treatment-resistant depression. Ketamine has even more substantial clinical research backing up its use for depression, anxiety, and PTSD.

Delic acquired Ketamine Wellness Centers (KWC) in November 2021. Today, Delic runs the largest chain of psychedelic mental health clinics in the U.S., operating 12 ketamine wellness clinics. The company has plans to open an additional 15 clinics in the next 18 months. Stang says his team founded Delic in order to improve people’s lives and offer access to lifesaving medicine.

The Harris Poll study found 83% of Americans experiencing anxiety, depression or PTSD would be open to pursuing alternative treatments. Respondents said that if plant medicines were “proven more effective than prescription medication with fewer side effects,” 66% would try ketamine, 62% would try psilocybin, and 56% would try MDMA.

18% of people surveyed said that traditional pharmaceutical medication did not improve their condition or even made it worse. The survey was conducted from December 6 to 8, 2021, polling 2,037 adults ages 18 and older. Among them, the survey polled 953 people who suffer from anxiety, depression, and/or PTSD.

“Delic Labs is developing analytical capabilities that will help form a complete picture of psychedelic medicine and ensure drug safety,” says Dr. Marcus Roggen, President & Chief Science Officer of Delic Labs.

“In the area of medical developments, psilocybin and other plant-based compounds show great promise, but also have their limitations,” says Dr. Roggen. “With our medicinal chemistry expertise as the foundation, we will continue to explore these novel psychedelic compounds and other drug candidates with the goal of adding them to this exciting field of medicine.”

The group demographics varied. “Of the people who participated, 48% identified as male and 50.9% identified as female. In regard to age, we saw a wide variety of respondents with 28.4% aged 18-34; 16.7% aged 35-44; 15.9% aged 45-54; 16.6% aged 55-64 and 21.5% over the age of 65. In regard to race, 61.8% identified as white, 16.5% identified as Hispanic and 11.8% identified as Black,” says Stang.

The survey is not comprehensive, and the respondents self-reported, which can leave room for potential bias. “This survey is not based on a probability sample and therefore no estimate of theoretical sampling error can be calculated,” says Stang.

“We truly believe the world will look back on this moment right before full global acceptance and remark how much more effective treatment has become, in a very short time,” says Stang. “This promising family of new medicines has the potential to be more effective than traditional medicines with minimal side effects.”

In 2021, the company hosted its inaugural Meet Delic psychedelic medicine conference, one of the largest psychedelic wellness industry conferences in the world, which welcomed 2,500 attendees. Tickets are on sale for its 2022 event which will take place November 5 and 6, 2022, in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Delic is listed on the Canadian Securities Exchange (CSE: DELC), the OTC Market’s Group (OTCQB: DELCF) as well as Germany’s largest stock exchange market called the Frankfurt Stock Exchange (FRA: 6X0).