A British woman who reportedly drunk a tea brewed with the psychedelic drug ayahuasca has died at a health retreat deep in the Amazon rainforest.
Mother-of-three Maureen Rainford, 54, was staying at the Ayahuasca and San Pedro Pisatahua Retreat in Bolivia when she died last month.
Witnesses said she died a short time after drinking the ayahuasca tea – a mind-altering concoction made from two Amazonian plants – reports the Telegraph.
Rainford complained of feeling ill 10 minutes following drinking the tea before her experiencing breathing troubles, they said.
Despite attempts to resuscitate her, she died an hour later and before a doctor arrived.
Her daughter Rochel, 32, said that staff at the retreat told her that she had suffered a “medical emergency”.
Rochel said that after contacting the British consulate, her mother’s body was returned to the UK and a post-mortem examination confirmed she suffered a heart attack.
The funeral was held last week.
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Ayahuasca, also known as “yage,” is made from the Banisteriopsis caapi vine and the leaves of the chacruna plant found in the Amazon rainforest.
It’s generally taken in the jungle as part of a ritualistic ceremony, guided by a shaman singing traditional songs.
In recent years, many Westerners have flocked to ayahuasca centres in the jungle as it’s reported to have beneficial effects on conditions such as depression and anxiety, as well as aiding people to quit serious addictions.
But, outside of the Amazon ayahuasca has an ambiguous legal status. It is classed as an illegal Class A drug in the UK.
Britain’s Prince Harry, writing in his memoir Spare, admitted taking the drug ”therapeutically” and “medicinally” to help him overcome PTSD linked to his mother’s death.
