The California Department of Public Health (CDPH) has issued an urgent advisory following a recent outbreak of amatoxin poisoning linked to the consumption of wild, foraged death cap mushrooms (Amanita phalloides).
Death cap mushrooms contain potentially deadly toxins, and consuming these mushrooms can cause severe poisoning.
As of Friday, the California Poison Control System (CPCS) had identified 21 cases of toxic mushroom poisoning – including one fatality, an adult – likely connected to death cap mushrooms, with significant clusters reported in the Monterey and San Francisco bay areas, although there is risk statewide.
Several patients have required intensive care, with at least one individual potentially needing a liver transplant. The CPCS is monitoring the increase in calls related to individuals being hospitalized for consuming toxic foraged wild mushrooms.
The CPCS is also providing guidance to health care providers treating patients with toxic mushroom poisoning.
Initial symptoms after consuming wild mushrooms, such as watery diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain and dehydration, can occur within six to 24 hours following ingestion of these toxic mushrooms and usually go away within a day.
However, patients can still develop serious to fatal liver damage within 48 to 96 hours after eating the mushrooms. Health care providers are advised to contact the CPCS for guidance on diagnosing and treating patients with suspected mushroom poisoning.
Given the grave risk posed by consuming these toxic mushrooms, CDPH strongly advises the public to avoid foraging wild mushrooms and to consume mushrooms purchased from reputable stores or known commercial sources.
Dr. Erica Pan, CDPH director and state public health officer, said in a media statement that cooking, boiling, drying or freezing these mushrooms does not make them safe to eat.
For more information, visit the CDPH website.
To contact the California Poison Control System, call 800-222-1222.
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