TUNE in, drop out鈥� and clock on. Workers in Silicon Valley and elsewhere have long extolled the virtues of LSD and other psychedelics. Small doses, they say, make them more productive, focused and creative (see 鈥�Microdosers say tiny hits of LSD make you better at work and life鈥�).
These are familiar claims. Every few years a new wave of 鈥�smart drugs鈥� sweeps across university campuses and creative industries. They are always accompanied by anecdotal reports of heightened mental powers, and concerns about adverse health effects and unlevel playing fields.
Microdosing ticks all of these boxes, but also raises a more serious issue. LSD is strictly prohibited worldwide, on the grounds that it poses a major health risk and has no therapeutic value. Meanwhile, microdosing is about to enter scientific trials that could supply the first real evidence of effectiveness. This poses a potential dilemma.
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The sensible option would be to downgrade the legal status of LSD. That would be entirely in keeping with growing evidence that it is and can be medically useful.
As for microdosing, experience with smart drugs suggests that people will do it anyway. The risks deserve further attention, but a serious criminal record shouldn鈥檛 be one of them.
This article appeared in print under the headline 鈥淭he acid test鈥�
