Beware of Deceptive Mushrooms: A Common Mistake

Mushroom season is in full swing across the country's forests. In the quest for edible mushrooms, many people pick the wrong ones. So far this year, the Poison Information Center has received about 100 calls regarding poisoning that required medical attention. There are several deceptive mushrooms to be particularly cautious of.

Of the 5,000 mushroom species visible to the naked eye in Sweden's forests and fields, only about 100 are edible.

– Every year, we are particularly concerned about poisonings from mushrooms containing amatoxins or orellanin. Both can cause life-threatening symptoms, says Peter Hultén, a pharmacist at the Poison Information Center.

Deadly Toxins

Amatoxin is found in white and death cap mushrooms, as well as the small deadly galerina. Initially, they cause stomach illness, followed by a temporary improvement – but after one to two days, liver damage can occur, sometimes leading to liver failure.

Orellanin is present in the deadly webcap and the fool's webcap. Symptoms, such as nausea, chills, and headaches, often appear after several days and are linked to kidney damage.

– Looking at deaths that have occurred over the years, it is almost always within the group with amatoxins, says Peter Hultén.

The Poison Information Center is not aware of any deaths occurring this year.

A Simple Rule

For inexperienced mushroom pickers, there is a simple rule of thumb: avoid mushrooms with white gills and brown mushrooms with brown gills.

– A classic mistake is confusing a champignon with a death cap. Champignons have pink or dark gills, while death caps have white gills, says Peter Hultén.

– If you learn to recognize the death cap, the destroying angel, and the deadly webcap, you are quite safe. These are the most common deadly species, says Michael Krikorev, a mycologist at SLU.