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Mushrooms Safety
There are thousands of mushroom varieties.
While some are edible and delicious, most can make you very
sick, or may even kill you. Fall and spring are the biggest wild mushroom
seasons. The rains and cool temperatures are perfect for their
growth. After the first frost, there are few mushrooms to
harvest until spring. Then, in spring, mushrooms flourish
again.
Symptoms of
Mushroom Poisoning
Early symptoms of
mushroom poisoning include feeling sick, stomach cramps,
vomiting, and watery or bloody diarrhea. Symptoms may show up
right after you eat the mushroom, or may appear several hours
later. If you have any of these symptoms, call your doctor
right away. You may need treatment.
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Identification
If you
gather wild mushrooms, examine each mushroom very carefully.
Be certain that it is the variety you are familiar with, and
that it is safe, because many poisonous mushrooms look similar to
edible ones. If you notice anything unfamiliar in a mushroom, do not eat it because cooking
mushrooms will not eliminate the toxins that can be dangerous.
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Signs a mushroom may be poisonous
Some very poisonous mushrooms that grow in Colorado look very
much like edible mushrooms that grow in Asia or other parts of
the world. If you are used to picking wild mushrooms in other
countries, please do NOT assume that the same safe varieties
grow in this area, even if they look similar.
There are only two ways to know if a wild
mushroom is safe:
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Have it identified by an expert. In Colorado
contact the Colorado Mycological (Mushroom) Society.
-
Buy it from a store or in a restaurant that
has purchased it from experts. The Boulder County Food Code
requires stores and restaurants to "sell only food that is
safe for human consumption."
If you believe you have eaten poisonous
mushrooms, but are unsure, call Poison Control at
800-222-1222 in Metro Denver or outside Metro Denver at
800-222-1222. If you have eaten mushrooms and begin to feel ill, call your
doctor or clinic. If the situation is urgent or
life-threatening, call 911.
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