Could Natural Treatments Have Helped Amy Winehouse?

Reference:
http://www.foxnews.com/health/2011/07/25/psychedelics-for-drug-addiction/

Summary: This article states that there could have been a natural cure to Amy winehouses drug use. Using ayahuasca a brew made from the Banisteriopsis caapi a vine and the Psychotria viridis a leaf found in the Amazon rainforest. This brew has been known for its unusual healing abilities including stopping drug addictions. Dr Dennis McKenna and other researchers have been studying ayahuasca. They have found that this brew normalizes brain levels that are critically important such as dopamine. Ayahuasca has been used to treat addictions of the body, mind, and spirit. Santo daime a large Brazilian Christian church has used ayahuasca as a way for the direct experience of the spirit in ceremonies all over the world. Many have be able to get rid of addictions such as heroin, cocaine and, alcohol using ayahuasca.

Critique: As far as the cure for Amy Winehouse goes she should have never got into drugs in the first place. Honestly I think the best way to get rid of a drug addiction is to not start one in the first place. However if someone has already started an addiction and truly wants to get out of it I think this is something to be looked into be the health agencies. Although I do not believe this should be just like another pill you take to kick the habit. If there is a time where this brew is medically cleared it should go along with rehabilitation because getting off the drugs is one thing staying of them is another.

Impact: If this brew is safe to take and there are no harmful side effects I think this could be a wonderful thing. It could get people away from harmful addictions but like I said before I think rehabilitation should go along side of it. This could really help people that are struggling for a way out of their addiction. I don’t know about all that direct experience of the spirit stuff but I can see the good in further examination of this brew.