Newsweek Declares that Heaven is Real!

[_DrW]

As Sam Harris quite rightly points out, everything that was described in terms of his NDE by the author of the Newsweek story at issue has been reported from ingestion of N, N, dimethyl tryptamine (DMT).

DMT can be a minor by-product along the biosynthetic pathway from the amino acid tryptophan to hormone and neurotransmitter melatonin in the human pineal gland (by way of the neurotransmitter serotonin).

Depending on the enzymes available, melatonin (5-methoxy tryptamine), can be further metabolized (via pinoline) to 5-methoxy dimethyl tryptamine and N,N, dimethyl tryptamine (DMT), both of which are psychoactive. DMT can also result from the shuttling of the intermediate tryptamine down a separate biosynthetic pathway in the pineal gland.

This is along way of saying that, just as humans have the capability to produce endogenous opiates, humans have the capability of synthesizing these psychoactive compounds as a matter of normal (or slightly altered) metabolism.

Having looked at tryptophan metabolism in hundreds of rat pineal glands as well as in more than a hundred human CSF, blood, and urine samples, I can tell you that there are a myriad of these tryptophan-derived compounds that are readily detectable, some of which can be psychoactive in exceedingly low concentrations (small doses).

Those who want to believe in a supernatural cause for the NDE constellation should consider a more rational, and much more probable explanation; namely, that these perceptions are a result of brain anoxia and associated increased production of endogenous psychoactive compounds brought on altered metabolism in the brain, and specifically in the pineal gland.
_________________________

Note: Synthetic DMT is not a compound that one would want to fool around with as a recreational drug. Trust me on that.

[Doctor Steuss]

Note: Synthetic DMT is not a compound that one would want to fool around with as a recreational drug. Trust me on that.

The Wikipedia article on DMT says it has few physical side effects and no addiction potential, which is typical of psychedelic drugs.

Are you warning about DMT's extreme psychological potency? Makes people go nuts and believe they've contacted alien beings? Maybe the men in black don't want us to contact the aliens so they spread fear (just kidding).

I've had many good experiences on mushrooms and I am curious about other hallucinogens but haven't tried any. I know a lot of people who rave about DMT.

[_The Dude]

Sam Harris fairly well exposes Dr. Alexander's sloppy pseudoscientific Newsweek story:
http://www.samharris.org/blog/item/this-must-be-heaven

Here is a question: Why would the brain explode with neurological activity as it is dying? What would be the evolutionary advantage of a brain offering its soon-to-be-dead host, lucid consciousness that it has never provided at any other time while fully functioning?

Doesn't make sense to me.

Lots of things don't make sense when viewed narrowly as evolutionarily advantageous or not. What is the evolutionary advantage of death? Yet it happens.

[_lulu]

When someone dying in Tibet has an NDE of Jesus, get back to me.

[_Chap]

...
Lots of things don't make sense when viewed narrowly as evolutionarily advantageous or not. What is the evolutionary advantage of death? Yet it happens.
...

You are the expert in the field of genetics, not me. But with all due deference, surely evolution in creatures that reproduce sexually requires that old individuals die off to make room in the ecosystem for new and (possibly) better adapted members of the species?

Please correct me if I am wrong, which I may well be.

[_Chap]

I think it very likely that what are called 'near death experiences' will turn out to be phenomena resulting from a brain in course of shutting down as its oxygen supply diminishes.

Still, these experiences sound both pleasant and interesting. Since death is inevitable. it's rather nice to know that there is one last thing to look forward to! I wonder what it will be like? You will never know how it was for me when my time comes, of course. But I hope it's good for all the rest of you out there!

[_lulu]

...
Lots of things don't make sense when viewed narrowly as evolutionarily advantageous or not. What is the evolutionary advantage of death? Yet it happens.
...

You are the expert in the field of genetics, not me. But with all due deference, surely evolution in creatures that reproduce sexually requires that old individuals die off to make room in the ecosystem for new and (possibly) better adapted members of the species?

Please correct me if I am wrong, which I may well be.

Interesting take, but I'm an expert in nothing.

But as to Lee's comment, not every single random mutation results in an evolutionary advantage. Just enough of them need to give any given individual an advantage which he/she will then pass along.

All living beings pack around disadvantagous mutations, but it terms of survival, the advantagous ones just need to outway the disadvantagous ones.

Over time will every last disadvantagous one disapear? At what point over time?

Perfection is a human construction.

[Guest]

Note: Synthetic DMT is not a compound that one would want to fool around with as a recreational drug. Trust me on that.

The Wikipedia article on DMT says it has few physical side effects and no addiction potential, which is typical of psychedelic drugs.

Are you warning about DMT's extreme psychological potency? Makes people go nuts and believe they've contacted alien beings? Maybe the men in black don't want us to contact the aliens so they spread fear (just kidding).

I've had many good experiences on mushrooms and I am curious about other hallucinogens but haven't tried any. I know a lot of people who rave about DMT.

Dude,

Please note that I was referring specifically to synthetic DMT. Naturally sourced DMT may be okay.

Also, things may have gotten better in the intervening years, but when I worked in the area there were a number of instances of neurotoxicity from synthetic DMT or DMT -contaminated tryptophan, leading to permanent brain damage in several cases.

Early use of DMT as a hallucinogen was much like the early days of the use of LSD. Folks were messing with a potently psychoactive compounds without really knowing what they were doing.

As you certainly know, for good quality DMT, in an appropriate dose, the side effects are supposedly mild (mainly increased blood pressure and sometimes nausea). Nonetheless, I would definitely try to find someone with experience with the material to be around the first time (every time actually) that I tried it. I would not try it alone. And I would go for a naturally sourced material.

The dosing mode of choice now seems to be to smoke marijuana spiked with the (hopefully pure) synthetic powder. It is potent stuff, so be careful with the dosage.
___________________________________

I posted a summary explaining the origins and relationships among a range of biogenic psychoactive indole alkaloids a few years ago. Will see if I can find it and re-post it.

There are certainly wide variety of these. What I find fascinating about them nowadays is that, when considered in terms of their biosynthesis and function up a down the phylogenetic scale, they provide very strong line of evidence for evolution.

[_Harold Lee]

The problem with DMT is you need to read the label very carefully. They rarely sell the substance by itself nowadays like the good ol days of grandpa's cough medicine, it's usually laced with substances that if you take enough to start tripping will cause you to OD or cause organ failure. (If you find a product with JUST DMT let me know lol).

I can understand why they wanted to make DMT not abused by adding these since if word got out that kids got out of this world high from their products parents wouldn't buy it anymore, but the dangers of using DMT recreationally are very minimal and the dangers they create by misreading the label and using it are always severe or fatal.

[_DrW]

Natural sources of choice include several varieties of ayahausca, which can be extracted to yield both N, N, DMT and 5-Methoxy N, N, DMT, a related indole that is also psychoactive, although less potent than DMT itself.