Psilocybin mushrooms, or "magic mushrooms," have been used by humans for centuries, usually in spiritual practices, including by the Aztecs who called them "flesh of the gods" due to their visionary effects. Although psilocybin was banned in the U.S. in 1971, research on it resumed in 2000, leading to a renewed interest for use in treating a variety of mental health conditions. While psilocybin remains illegal at the federal level, state and local laws are becoming more relaxed, leading to the appearance of products like mushroom chocolates, cones (think mini sugar or waffle cones), and gummies in smoke shops and gas stations marketed as “legal psychedelics.” A recent wave of illnesses and two purported deaths have been linked to these mushroom-infused products, spurring a national conversation around product transparency, consumer safety and the future of psychedelics in America. Let’s dive into the facts behind these current events and offer some advice for would-be consumers.
What are magic mushrooms?
The term "magic mushrooms” typically refers to fungi that contain psilocybin, a naturally occurring psychoactive compound. When ingested, psilocybin is metabolized into psilocin, which can cause visual and auditory changes in perception, commonly referred to as "tripping." Psilocybin mushrooms are generally not considered toxic, with fatalities rare and mainly due to combining with other drugs. There are about 200 species of mushrooms that produce psilocybin, most of which belong to the worldwide genus Psilocybe. Since 2000, studies have explored the potential for psilocybin to treat a range of mental health disorders, including depression and anxiety. Studies by researchers at Johns Hopkins Medicine have shown that psilocybin can relieve symptoms of major depressive disorder in adults for up to a month, and a 2022 follow-up study showed that psilocybin can be effective at treating these symptoms for up to a year. Despite promising developments, psilocybin and psilocin remain federally illegal in the United States, classified as a Schedule 1 substance, defined as having a high potential for abuse along with no currently accepted use in a medical setting. Despite this, numerous states and cities have reclassified psilocybin as their “lowest law enforcement priority,” effectively decriminalizing their possession.
Amanita muscaria, the red mushroom with white spots also known as the Fly Agaric mushroom, is another fungi that is sometimes lumped into the category of being “magic.” With a long history of use in Siberia, its main psychoactive components are ibotenic acid and muscimol which can cause visual and auditory changes in perception similar to psilocybin. In the body, psilocybin acts as an antidepressant upon serotonin receptors in the brain, while Amanita is a depressant that suppresses the central nervous system, similar to alcohol and benzodiazepines. Both ibotenic acid and muscimol are neurotoxins and considered highly toxic to fatal at high doses. Unlike psilocybin mushrooms, Amanita is currently legal in the United States, with a statewide ban in effect in Louisiana.
Marketing & packaging
When a consumer buys a pack of mushroom-infused edibles like gummies, the first thing they notice is the packaging. Bright, colorful, and eye-catching labels scream “Legal Psychedelic,” “Magic Amanita Gummy,” and “High Potency Formula” accompanied by trippy visuals and statements including “Warning! Potent” and “Taste The Universe.” While mushroom gummy packaging typically includes the disclaimer, “This Product Does Not Contain Psilocybin,” the active ingredient(s) responsible for what makes consumers “trip” is either omitted entirely or buried in language like “Proprietary Nootropic Mushroom Blend.” Other ingredients listed include substances like melatonin, passion flower, blue lotus, lion’s mane, and reishi along with standardized warnings about not operating a vehicle or heavy machinery while taking the product. Dosing information is either nonexistent or vague, and could include a smiley face or cartoon mushroom melting more and more as the suggested dosage increases. The packaging is sleek, but lacks key information about what’s actually present in the product. If the “magic mushrooms” are not psilocybin, what are they?
Gray market mushrooms
Colorado-based Tryptomics lab tested 24 “magic mushroom” chocolate bars from the Bay Area and found that 8 of them didn’t contain natural psilocybin but a synthetic and more potent version called 4-AcO-DMT, or psilacetin. This compound, first synthesized by Albert Hoffman and Franz Troxler before psychedelic compounds were federally criminalized in 1971, was thought to be a potential alternative to psilocybin in research. Although 4-AcO-DMT isn't specifically listed as a Schedule 1 substance and isn’t technically illegal, it can be treated as one under the Federal Analogue Act if it's intended for human use. According to ASC Laboratory, brands selling 4-AcO-DMT products “must navigate a complex and often unclear regulatory landscape [which] requires significant legal expertise and compliance with various drug laws.” Despite its similarity to psilocybin, including its conversion to psilocin in the body, 4-AcO-DMT remains under-researched, with unknown health risks, and according to Tryptomics co-founder Christopher Pauli, synthetic psilocybin is not inherently dangerous but it could be contaminated with toxic heavy metals or residual solvents from the manufacturing process. Compounding the issue of transparency, DoubleBlind Magazine and Oakland Hyphae tested a batch of mushroom edibles from a variety of producers and found that more often than not, products were mislabeled and contained a range of psychoactive compounds not necessarily mentioned in their labels.
2024 Diamond Shruumz™ product recall
On June 12th, 2024, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued a health alert for “Severe Illness Potentially Associated with Consuming Diamond Shruumz™ Brand Chocolate Bars, Cones, and Gummies” after 8 people across 4 states became ill following consumption of their products. The CDC, US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and a network of poison control centers investigated the illnesses, which included seizures, muscle stiffness, abdominal pain, abnormal heart rates, high and low blood pressure, nausea, and vomiting. On June 27, Diamond Shruumz™ parent company Prophet Premium Blends, LLC of Santa Ana, CA initiated a recall of all flavors of their chocolate bars, cones, and gummies, stating that they contained toxic levels of muscimol (a psychoactive chemical found in the Fly Agaric mushroom Amanita muscaria). As of August 16, a total of 145 illnesses were reported across 29 states resulting in 59 hospitalizations and two potentially associated deaths. By mid-August, the FDA had tested 22 samples of implicated chocolate bars and detected muscimol in just 9 of them. Since it was not present in all samples, it could not account for all the illnesses. Other substances found in the product samples included psilocin, which was identified in 4 samples, the anticonvulsant drug pregabalin (sold under the brand name Lyrica) found in 3 samples, along with multiple chemical constituents from the sedative herb kava detected in 18 samples. Synthetic psilocybin (aka psilacetin, 4-AcO-DMT) was found in 9 samples. The FDA continues to study recalled products in an effort to root out the cause of the illnesses.
Final thoughts on magic mushroom gummies
Research chemicals and proprietary nootropic mushroom blends have flooded the gray market in recent years, spurred on by a growing public interest in psychedelics for mental health and the relaxation of laws around their possession and use. But are consumers getting what they paid for? As the Diamond Shruumz issue illustrates, they may not be, but they have a right to know exactly what they are taking in order to understand the potential health benefits and risks associated with their use. Stricter rules combating inaccurate labeling, packaging appealing to children, and potentially dangerous manufacturing practices are needed in order to not endanger the broader movement to bring psilocybin into the mainstream. With so much interest in psychedelics, transparency is essential for protecting consumers and enabling them to make safe, informed decisions.