Most Americans unaware of psychedelic treatment for mental health: Ipsos poll on awareness, attitudes, and trusted information sources

Psychedelic mental health treatment has limited public awareness in the US, even as research evidence for compounds like psilocybin, ketamine, and MDMA continues to grow. An Ipsos poll (KnowledgePanel, n=1,034 adults, fielded May 16-18, 2025) finds fewer than 30% of respondents consider themselves very or somewhat familiar with medical research on psychedelics for mental health conditions. Awareness is strongly linked to attitudes: support for medicinal use with mental health therapy is higher among those aware (75%) than those unaware (44%), while support stays low for broad legalization and accessibility. People across awareness levels name therapists, psychiatrists, mental healthcare providers, and primary care providers as the most trusted sources of information. Respondents also broadly indicate that current mental health treatments like long-term psychiatric medication and talk therapy are not sufficient, suggesting a need for targeted education to improve understanding and openness toward psychedelics as a treatment.