Mushrooms

Mushrooms are responsible for numerous calls to poison centers each year. There are thousands of different species of mushroom. Mushrooms come in a variety of shapes, sizes, and colors. Toxic mushrooms may resemble the edible mushrooms you find in the grocery store. Because of the difficulty identifying mushroom species, the poison center recommends never ingesting wild mushrooms.

• Symptoms of mushroom poisoining
  • While the majority of wild mushrooms will only cause mild abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea, a few can lead to severe illness, such as liver or kidney failure, and death. Coprinoid mushrooms, such as the Inky cap, cause a severe reaction when ingested with alcohol. There are also mushrooms, such as Amanita muscaria (fly agaric) and Psilocybe (the "magic mushroom"), that can cause hallucinogenic effects. There are others, such as Gyromitra (false morel), that may cause seizures.

• What are amatoxins?
  • The most concerning and dangerous mushrooms are those that contain amatoxins, such as Amanita phalloides (the death cap). Amatoxins are heat-stable and are not denatured or removed when cooked. Amatoxins are also well absorbed when consumed. Symptom onset after ingestion of amatoxins is often delayed by more than six hours. Symptoms begin with nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea and progresses to multi-organ failure, specifically the liver and kidneys, and death.

As the saying goes, "There are old mushroom hunters and there are bold mushroom hunters, but there are no old, bold mushroom hunters."