Food Poisoning | Mushroom Poisoning

What is mushroom poisoning?

People are poisoned each year after eating mushrooms from their yard or outside locations. These mushrooms should not to be eaten. It’s difficult to tell which mushrooms can be eaten and which cannot. Poisonous mushrooms can make you sick. Some are actually deadly.

Symptoms of mushroom poisoning

Common symptoms include:

• nausea
• stomach cramps
• vomiting
• diarrhea (sometimes bloody)
• headache
• dizziness
• flushing (warm and red) in the face and abdomen
• heart palpitations.

More serious symptoms include:

• seizures
• hallucinations
• problems breathing
• kidney/liver failure
• coma
• death.

Symptoms can appear right after eating the poisonous mushroom. Or they could appear several hours later. Symptoms that occur within 2 hours are less dangerous than those that appear later (after 6 hours).

What causes mushroom poisoning?

Eating poisonous mushrooms causes mushroom poisoning.

How is mushroom poisoning diagnosed?

Mushroom poisoning is difficult to diagnose. Your doctor will examine you. He or she will ask you about your symptoms and when and what you ate recently. The diagnosis is based on the information you provide.

Can mushroom poisoning be prevented or avoided?

You can avoid mushroom poisoning by not eating mushrooms picked from the ground. It’s difficult to tell which mushrooms are poisonous and which are not. They can be growing next to each other. There are no tests to tell a poisonous mushroom from a nonpoisonous mushroom. Assume all wild mushrooms are poisonous. It’s best to buy them from the store.

Mushrooms that grow in the ground are more dangerous than mushrooms that grow on living trees. Mushrooms on the ground in forests are more dangerous than mushrooms in yards. Cooking poisonous mushrooms will not remove the toxins.

Mushroom poisoning treatment

If you suspect that you or someone you are with has mushroom poisoning, call your doctor. Or call the Poison Control Center. Call 911 if the person is unconscious, not breathing, or having convulsions. The phone number for the Poison Control Center is 1-800-222-1222. This number is answered 24 hours. It’s a good idea to keep this number in your phone contacts. Take the person to the emergency room. If possible, bring a few of the mushrooms the person ate with you to the doctor or the emergency room.

If the person has thrown up, the worst is probably over. Doctors may give the person activated charcoal to cause vomiting. The doctor will check the person’s temperature, heart rate, and blood pressure. He or she will be watched closely for severe symptoms and complications. The person will be sent home if he or she has no symptoms of severe poisoning, and if the mushroom is proven harmless. Your doctor will ask you to watch the person for any symptoms of mushroom poisoning for the next 24 hours.

Living with mushroom poisoning

Short-term effects of living with mushroom poisoning are unpleasant. These are things related to vomiting and diarrhea. More severe symptoms may take longer to recover or cause permanent damage.

Questions to ask your doctor

• Are poisonous mushrooms dangerous for my pets?
• What if I don’t know if the person I’m with ate a poisonous mushroom?
• Can over-the-counter nausea medicine help?