Salinas Valley Health says three people are still ill after eating non-hallucinogenic mushroom on NYE
SALINAS, Calif. (KION-TV) -- Salinas Valley Health (SVH) announced Friday that three people became critically ill after purchasing a type of non-hallucinogenic mushroom called deathcap (which "can be lethal," according to NPR).
Salinas Valley Health Emergency Department physicians say three people came into the ER New Year’s Eve suffering from acute hepatotoxicity, telling the doctors they purchased mushrooms from someone selling produce in the parking lot of an East Salinas grocery store.
They then cooked with the mushrooms and became sick after eating a meal together.
“It is important for people understand the potential dangers of mushrooms not grown in a regulated, commercial environment,” says Erica Locke, MD, Salinas Valley Health Emergency Department physician. “The patients who came into our ER ate what are amanita phalloides mushrooms, commonly known as death cap mushrooms because of their potential deadly impact on the liver.”
According to the hospital, the three victims are still very sick and are currently receiving treatment at Stanford.
“The initial signs of ingesting poisonous mushrooms are gastrointestinal symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and stomach pain,” says Dr. Locke. “Those symptoms however generally improve in about 24 hours but damage is already taking place in the liver which can result in liver failure, the need for a liver transplant and even death.”
Dr. Locke says the individuals ingesting the mushrooms thought they were purchasing and eating common white button mushrooms, which can look similar to their wild and poisonous counterpart.
“Foraging for wild mushrooms in our community is common, however it’s important for people not to eat any mushrooms gathered in the wild or buy mushrooms from a non-commercial source,” warns Dr. Locke. "Mushrooms in general in the forest, can be highly dangerous, especially here in Monterey County. The amanita phalloides is very common. There are other regions in the country where they are not, but here they are super, super common."
SVH says that the seller(s) may be operating out of multiple locations, and that the police are currently investigating this case.
“These are rare cases which is why it is so concerning to have these mushrooms apparently being sold as produce in our community," said Dr. Locke. "In my nearly 20 year medical career, I have only seen one other case like this.”
Again, SVH is telling people only to eat mushrooms sold at reputable produce outlets.
