# Understanding the Safety of Psilocybin Therapy: What We Know About Side Effects
As mental health treatment options expand for older adults struggling with depression, anxiety, and other psychiatric conditions, psilocybin—a naturally occurring compound found in certain mushrooms—has emerged as a promising therapy. For elderly patients who may not respond well to conventional treatments or who experience intolerable side effects from traditional antidepressants, understanding the safety profile of this alternative approach is crucial. This comprehensive review examined safety data from 42 clinical studies involving over 1,000 participants who received psilocybin therapy, providing valuable insights into what side effects occur and how they can be managed in clinical settings.
The findings offer reassuring news about psilocybin’s safety when administered in controlled, supervised environments. The most commonly reported side effects were relatively mild and temporary: headaches, brief increases in blood pressure, and nausea that typically resolved without medical treatment. Serious adverse events were rare, occurring in only 2 of the 42 studies reviewed, and were limited to participants who already had underlying depression—these included suicidal thoughts or behaviors requiring hospitalization. Importantly, when medical intervention was needed for side effects, such instances were uncommon. These results suggest that with proper screening, preparation, and monitoring, psilocybin therapy can be administered with an acceptable safety profile comparable to many existing psychiatric treatments.
For older adults and their families considering emerging treatment options, this research provides important context. While psilocybin shows promise, it’s not without risks, particularly for individuals with severe depression. Healthcare providers working with geriatric populations should note that all studies reviewed had limitations in their ability to fully blind participants (since the effects of psilocybin are quite noticeable), which means safety data should be interpreted with appropriate caution. The controlled clinical setting—with trained professionals monitoring participants throughout the experience—appears to be essential for safety. As research continues, these findings help establish guidelines for how to safely conduct psilocybin therapy and what monitoring protocols should be in place, paving the way for potentially offering this treatment option to carefully selected older adults who might benefit from alternative approaches to managing treatment-resistant mental health conditions.
Source Information
Original Title: Adverse event reporting and management in psilocybin therapy clinical trials: A systematic review to guide clinical and research protocol development.
Authors: Bukovsky D, Amaev A, Song J, Kyte S, Carmona-Torres E
Journal: Progress in neuro-psychopharmacology & biological psychiatry (Oct 2025)
PubMed ID: 41138900
DOI: 10.1016/j.pnpbp.2025.111541
This summary was generated using AI to make recent geriatrics and frailty research more accessible. Please refer to the original article for complete details.
