US doctors warn of rise in Mushroom poisoning due to increasing ‘foraging’ trend
Consumption of these mushrooms had led to a rise in cases of mushroom poisoning.
A rise in the ‘foraging’ trend of mushrooms, where people search and collect mushrooms from the wild has led to an increase in the cases of mushroom poisonings in the US.
More and more people have taken to the hobby of going into the wild, enjoying fresh air and a mushroom hunt. However, a rise in this niche has proven to be dangerous to the lives of many.
From January to October 2023, America's Poison Centers have seen an 11% increase in reports of mushroom poisonings compared to 2022.
Totally, 7,520 of these calls were made.
Ingesting the wrong mushrooms can lead to symptoms like mild stomach ache, vomiting, liver failure, neurological deficits and even death.
People have had to undergo organ transplants and a child in California even suffered permanent neurological damage.
Managing director of the Drug & Poison Information Center in Ohio, Jonathan Colvin told CNN that in just 2023, Ohio's poison centers have gotten more than 260 mushroom-related calls since October.
Of all the callers, 45% were directed to the emergency room and 33% were hospitalized.
He said calls about potential poisonings have increased by 25% from pre-pandemic levels.
While it is not always clear if the poison call is connected to mushroom foraging, Mr Colvin said the people needing the most serious treatment for liver and kidney injuries reported they had consumed mushrooms they found in the wild that they misidentified as edible.
The trend of mushroom ‘foraging’ trend has seen a rise and there are plenty of how-to guides for beginners, but experts stress the importance of foraging with an expert who can identify mushrooms that are safe to eat and those that are potentially deadly.
Most mushroom poisonings occur because either a person or app has identified a mushroom species as safe to eat, when in reality, it could be deadly.
There are more than 5,000 species of mushrooms. Of those, about 50 are toxic to humans. Death cap mushrooms and similar varieties that contain the same toxin are to blame for the majority of deaths from mushroom-poisoning deaths.
These are unlike the run-of-the-mill mushrooms found on grocery store shelves, which include button, cremini, portobello and porcini mushrooms.