The U.S. Embassy in Lima warns Americans about a traditional psychedelic called ayahuasca. It says that it contains “dimethyltryptamine” (DMT), which is a powerful hallucinogen illegal in many countries, including the United States.
Officials argued that using ayahuasca or kambo—a psychoactive substance derived from some frogs—can cause negative health effects and increase risks of sexual assault, robbery and other hazards.
“These dangerous substances are often marketed to travelers in Peru as ‘ceremonial’ or ‘spiritual cleansers,'” embassy officials wrote in a late January health alert to U.S. citizens, adding: “Facilities or groups offering ayahuasca/kambo are not regulated by the Peruvian government and may not follow health and safety laws or practices.”
As for ayahuasca—a mixture of botanical ingredients that contains DMT—the alert says the substance “can cause several negative health effects, including nausea, vomiting, increased heart rate, and even death. Psychosis, sleep disorders, neurodegenerative diseases and hallucinations are some of the effects that can last a long time.
It continues, “Several U.S. residents died in 2024 or had severe health problems, including episodes of mental illness, as a result of consumption of Ayahuasca.” These incidents occur often in areas far from medical facilities, such as the Peruvian Amazon. “The limited connectivity, and the limited access to hospitals and emergency services increases risks.”
Peru: U.S. Ambassador recommends U.S. visitors to Peru do not ingest, or use hallucinogens known as ayahuasca and kambo. Travelers in Peru are frequently marketed these dangerous substances as “ceremonial cleaners” or “spiritual cleanser.”
U.S. citizens… pic.twitter.com/p0OvUrP2Pj
— Travel – State Dept (@TravelGov) January 23, 2025
The alert adds that “U.S. citizens in Peru have also recently reported being sexually assaulted, injured, or robbed while under the influence of these dangerous substances at ‘healing’ or ‘retreat’ centers.”
Since years, Americans have traveled to South American nations to get ayahuasca or other traditional psychedelics. These substances have been used for medicinal purposes for centuries. Researchers found in 2019 a cache of mind-altering chemicals that contained ayahuasca ingredients.
Traveling abroad to use ayahuasca and other psychedelics has become popular among veterans suffering from PTSD and other mental health conditions—a trend Vivek Ramaswamy acknowledged during his 2024 Republican presidential campaign.
Ramaswamy stated that the U.S. Government should lift restrictions on MDMA and ayahuasca by the end of 2023. He called the reforms “a holistic approach” in addressing the high rate of suicide and substance abuse among veterans.
“Today, over 20 (and by some estimates, 40+) veterans die by suicide *per day.* This is wrong & un-American,” the GOP contender said in a social media post. “I support decriminalizing ayahuasca & ketamine for veterans suffering from PTSD, to prevent the epidemic of fentanyl & suicide.”
In April of last year, meanwhile, the federal government reached a settlement with an Arizona-based nonprofit to permit the group to import and use ayahuasca as a religious sacrament—an agreement leaders called a historic milestone for spiritual freedom.
According to the agreement announced by the Church of the Eagle and the Condor, the group will be allowed “to import ayahuasca, receive it, manufacture, sell, transport and store it securely, and use ayahuasca exclusively for religious purposes.”
According to the agreement, the church will import the psychedelic DMT-containing ayahuasca “in liquid or concentrated form”, and “combine this ayahuasca with water in order to produce ayahuasca for sacramental purposes” in a Phoenix location.
One month later the Department of Justice deemed the settlement as “irrelevant”, in relation to a church located in Iowa which wanted to include ayahuasca in its ceremonies.
Earlier in the year, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) called for the production of even more DMT—along with psilocybin and THC—for research purposes than it had initially proposed for 2024, raising quotas for those drugs while maintaining already high production goals for marijuana and psychedelics.
DEA reiterated that request in December of last year, raising the quota by 2025 for legal DMT production in the U.S. It was stated at that time by the agency, it had agreed to requests to adjust the amount to support “legitimate research and scientific endeavors” for developing a Food and Drug Administration approved drug based upon the psychedelic.
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Photos courtesy Apollo/Flickr.