Mushroom poisoning fact sheet
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Mushroom poisoning fact sheet
Poisonous wild mushrooms are found growing across South Australia particularly after heavy rains in late summer to early winter when the earth is still warm. It isn’t possible to tell if a mushroom is toxic by its taste. Eating poisonous mushrooms can make a person very ill or even have life-threatening consequences.
There is no simple reliable test that shows which mushrooms are safe to eat. Even mushroom experts can have difficulty identifying some species. Mushrooms change their appearance depending on their growth stage so poisonous mushrooms can appear very similar and be easily mistaken for edible supermarket varieties.
We do not know the native fungi at all well, with only about 10-15% of the larger fungi described. There is a concern that people who have attended a local foraging tour may feel that they are now able to reliably recognise an edible mushroom species when foraging out on their own but ultimately misidentify poisonous mushrooms and risk their health.
Things you can do to prevent poisoning from wild mushrooms:
In an emergency always call 000 for an ambulance
Symptoms can be delayed by 6 to 24 hours after eating poisonous mushrooms. Severity depends on how much is eaten and symptoms may last for 2 to 3 days. Symptoms include:
Gastrointestinal symptoms associated with eating Death Cap mushrooms can appear to resolve after 2 to 4 days but toxic damage to the liver continues and causes death up to two weeks after ingestion. There is no complete antidote for Death Cap mushroom poisoning and survival depends on early diagnosis and treatment.
Anyone who has consumed a wild mushroom is at risk of potential life-threatening illness.