Psychedelics show promise for mental health

Public health, explained: Sign up to receive Dr. Jay K. Varma’s reports in your inbox a day early.Hello and welcome to Healthbeat’s weekly report on stories shaping public health in the United States.I am Dr. Jay K. Varma, a physician, epidemiologist, and public health expert currently serving as chief medical officer at Fedcap, a global nonprofit that promotes economic mobility and well-being for vulnerable communities. Views expressed here are my own.This week I am reminded how little we know about the brain and how that lack of understanding impairs our ability to address two of the most serious public health problems in America: severe mental illness and dementia. A White House event was either a historic turning point for mental health or a dangerous workaround of the Food and Drug Administration’s safety regulations; and a new report found that Alzheimer’s drugs have almost no benefit. We also saw updates to two important stories involving the Centers for Disease Control and Prev