[Pre-Columbian indigenous psychopharmacology]

Abstract

A careful review has been carried out on texts concerning Mexican medicine plants, especially on texts obtained directly from the XVI century Indian reports. The plants utilized for psychiatric purposes have been separated from the huge group of 1 500 medicine plants used by the prehispanic Indians, and have been found about 150 plants which have been classified in the modern way of antipsychotic, antidepressant, minor tranquilizer, hallucinogens, sedatives, hypnotics, brain tonics, stimulants and anticonvulsants. The intention in making this research is to awake the interest of the people in the experimenting field; as experiments have been effected only on hallucinogen up to now, and if these have proved to possess the effects caused to the Indians, supposedly large part of the other plants have the effects according to the indications they have mentioned.