"Microdosing" psychedelics, taking sub-perceptual doses of substances like LSD or psilocybin, has gone from fringe experimentation to mainstream obsession. Advocates claim benefits such as enhanced creativity, improved mood, increased focus, and relief from depression and anxiety.

Recent clinical trials fail to confirm the hype, at least pharmacologically, and suggest these benefits might not stem from the substances themselves.

Instead, they may be driven by belief. The more rigorous studies indicate that microdosing’s effects could be comparable to those of a placebo.

Psychologist James Fadiman, who began studying psychedelics in the early 1960s, ignited the modern microdosing movement by collecting thousands of self-reported experiences starting in the early 2010s. Focusing on subtle, everyday shifts in mood, focus, and creativity, he emphasized the practice of “citizen science” (public participation in scientific research to enhance knowledge).

In his latest book with Jordan Gruber, Microdosing for Healing, Health, and Enhanced Performance (2024), Fadiman shares patterns from over a decade of this citizen science. He asserts that the “reported and perceived changes in enhanced capacities and health conditions far exceed the possibility of just being explained by placebo and expectation effects.”

Recent placebo-controlled studies have cast doubt on the pharmacological efficacy of microdosing psychedelics, suggesting that observed benefits may largely stem from participants’........

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