Mushroom Poisoning

If You Suspect a Poisoning

If you suspect that you have consumed a poisonous mushroom, contact a physician, or Missouri Poison Control Center. Once help has been secured, it is advisable to try to get the suspect mushrooms identified. MOMS Experts page lists members who are available for routine mushroom identification, but for emergency poisonings your best bet is the Facebook page “Poisons Help: Emergency Identification for Mushrooms & Plants.” Experts from around the world who are familiar with the various toxins in poisonous mushrooms and plants are available on that page 24/7 and will respond quickly in cases when ingestion has occurred.

What You Can Do

If you, someone you know, or even your pet may have been poisoned by mushrooms, try to get a sample of the same mushroom or mushrooms from where they were found. This will help aid in identification.

Place any available material in a paper bag or waxed paper, not plastic and refrigerate until it can be examined. Note where the mushrooms were collected in case the mushrooms may have been contaminated by uptake of pesticides or heavy metals from lawns, roadsides or industrial areas.

Mushroom Poison Syndromes

For a list of syndromes associated with various toxic mushrooms click here.