Commonly Used Drugs/Ayahuasca

by National Institute on Drug Abuse, National Institutes of Health

Ayahuasca
A tea made in the Amazon from a plant (Psychotria viridis) containing the hallucinogen DMT, along with another vine (Banisteriopsis caapi) that contains an MAO inhibitor preventing the natural breakdown of DMT in the digestive system, which enhances serotonergic activity. It was used historically in Amazonian religious and healing rituals. For more information, see the Hallucinogens and Dissociative Drugs Research Report.
Street Names	Commercial Names	Common Forms	Common Ways Taken	DEA Schedule
Aya, Hoasca, Vine, Yagé	No commercial uses	Brewed as tea	Swallowed as tea	DMT is Schedule I, but plants containing it are not controlled
Possible Health Effects
Short-term	Strong hallucinations including altered visual and auditory perceptions; increased heart rate and blood pressure; nausea; burning sensation in the stomach; tingling sensations and increased skin sensitivity.
Long-term	Possible changes to the serotoninergic and immune systems, although more research is needed.
Other Health-related Issues	Unknown.
In Combination with Alcohol	Unknown.
Withdrawal Symptoms	Unknown.
Treatment Options
Medications	It is not known whether ayahuasca is addictive. There are no FDA-approved medications to treat addiction to ayahuasca or other hallucinogens.
Behavioral Therapies	More research is needed to find out if ayahuasca is addictive and, if so, whether behavioral therapies are effective.