Magic mushrooms contain psychoactive ingredients that affect your brain and body in various ways. Even though their history may seem relatively recent, ancient cultures have ingested these mushrooms for recreational, religious, and medicinal purposes for centuries. Magic mushrooms can be powerful and dangerous in large amounts. But healthcare professionals and researchers have started looking at them differently. Some scientific studies suggest that magic mushrooms may be a useful treatment for mental health conditions — like depression, anxiety, and substance use — when dosed in the right amount. But magic mushrooms can have drastically different effects depending on the person and their underlying mental health. So it’s important to understand the range of side effects and potential risks before you try it. What are magic mushrooms? Magic mushrooms (often referred to as “shrooms”) are a broad category that includes at least 300 different species of hallucinogenic mushrooms. Most of them contain psilocybin and psilocin, which are the active components in the mushrooms that cause mind-altering effects. You can ingest psilocybin in a few different ways. Some people eat the mushrooms (raw or cooked). People also use the mushrooms to make teas or other beverages. Some dry the mushrooms, turn them into a powder, and put them in capsules. How do magic mushrooms affect the brain? Researchers still have a lot to learn about the different ways that magic mushrooms affect brain function. But they have identified two active ingredients that seem to account for the mind-altering effects — psilocybin and psilocin. These substances activate serotonin receptors in your brain. Serotonin is the chemical in the brain that affects mood and perception. This may only be the beginning of our understanding. More recent research in humans has started to uncover how psilocybin disrupts connections in the brain responsible for symptoms of depression, anxiety, and substance use disorders. Not only that, it activates other parts of the brain that help combat these symptoms. In other words, psilocybin turns down the volume on harmful brain signals. And it increases the volume on helpful ones. People sometimes have a hard time explaining their experience with magic mushrooms. This is because it can affect multiple different aspects of brain function and processing. But most people describe the experience as both positive and enjoyable. Magic mushrooms tend to cause: Visual, sensory, and auditory hallucinations Elevated mood and euphoria Speeding up or slowing down of time A separation from the sense of self or ego A sense of wonder and awe A mystical, spiritual, or religious experience