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A rash of nearly lethal mushroom poisonings in Ohio

cleveland.com

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Re: A rash of nearly lethal mushroom poisonings in Ohio

#221

Post by cormullion »

dmitrybrant wrote: post #96
KerrAvon wrote: post #82

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Curiosity: do you find that you (at 30+ years) are so good at identification in the wild that you don’t find any “bad” specimens once you get them home, or do you still catch some outliers where you needed to look at them more closely? Or does the process involve taking them home for closer examination?

To be honest I don't recall the last time I've ever accidentally picked up a poisonous specimen along with the good ones I was intending to pick. At this point it's such second-nature that telling apart an edible vs. poisonous mushroom is like telling a bottle of milk from a bottle of Drano. And yet I still examine each one at home before putting it in the pot. The other thing is that the truly deadly varieties, such…

Most Amanitas have a prominent base (volva) but I expect too many pickers just pull out by the stem so might not notice it.

Re: A rash of nearly lethal mushroom poisonings in Ohio

#222

Post by superjan »

dreamcompiler wrote: post #85
dmitrybrant wrote: post #69

I've been foraging mushrooms for 30+ years, and I triple-check every single specimen before cooking it. The idea of a novice forager using an app to identify mushrooms is... unconscionable! Like... breathtakingly stupid. I've commented on this before, but it continues to baffle me how poorly-educated our public is about wild plants, berries, and mushrooms. And stories like this just perpetuate the fear (and stigma?)…

I've only eaten wild mushrooms once. They were picked by a friend I trusted who had been picking them for 20+ years, and he ate them at the same time I did. He damn sure was not using an app on his phone to identify them.

I do hunt mushrooms occasionally, and an app is useful if you understand the limitations. If the app gives you a name, the next thing to do is consult a mushroom book to learn if there is a risk of mixups with poisenous species.

In Western Europe, for instance, there is are edible wild champignons that are very similar “groene knol ameniet”, which is deadly.

I recently read that fatalities are on the rise because east europeans that migrate here look for wild champignons but do not know about the poisenous lookalike: it does not grow in the forests they grew up in.

Every region has some mushrooms species that you can learn to easily recognize and that don’t have “evil twins”. You should be aware that this varies by area.

So apps can be a useful tool but a good book that covers the region where you pluck is essential.

Re: A rash of nearly lethal mushroom poisonings in Ohio

#223

Post by 411111111111111 »

nkurz wrote: post #44

Since no one has done it yet, I'll ask the obvious question about the FDA: how many people die or need a liver transplant each year because the FDA is being unreasonable here? Here's some quotes from the article: Approximately 40% of people who ingest the deadly Amanita mushrooms die or require a liver transplant, according to Dr. Pierre Gholam, the liver specialist at University Hospitals who treated Hickman. ... Th…

> This literally takes an army of people working after hours,” said Gholam. “There are tireless, really unsung heroes at the UH research office who make this happen for every patient – they have to do this over and over and over.” Forty-seven times in the last 10 years to be exact.

Ohh, the poor guys have to hand in 4.7 forms per year to get access to an unapproved medicine they need.

I would've thought it was satire, but it seems you're serious? Amazing.

Re: A rash of nearly lethal mushroom poisonings in Ohio

#224

Post by e12e »

Matticus_Rex wrote: post #214
trhr wrote: post #196

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> There are virtually no deadly varieties that have pores. Never heard this one before. Adding it to my bug out notes. Thanks!

Note that there's at least one, and that a number of them will still make you sick. Put a few common pored edibles (Laetiporus sp., Cantharellus sp., Grifola frondosa, etc.) in your notes for sure though, with basic descriptions, as even their few remote lookalikes (at least pored ones -- some people think Omphalotus sp. look like Cantharellus for some reason) are just going to give you a moderate stomach upset at wo…

> Put a few common pored edibles (... Cantharellus sp

Chantarelles don't have pores?

Re: A rash of nearly lethal mushroom poisonings in Ohio

#226

Post by littlestymaar »

Aloha wrote: post #130
nkurz wrote: post #44

Since no one has done it yet, I'll ask the obvious question about the FDA: how many people die or need a liver transplant each year because the FDA is being unreasonable here? Here's some quotes from the article: Approximately 40% of people who ingest the deadly Amanita mushrooms die or require a liver transplant, according to Dr. Pierre Gholam, the liver specialist at University Hospitals who treated Hickman. ... Th…

"Gholam says that the process of FDA approval for Silibinin is slow, primarily because it only works for amatoxin poisoning, from the Amanita mushroom species. Those poisonings are rare – so gathering enough data to satisfy the safety and efficacy requirements of the FDA takes time. And there is little financial incentive by the company that owns the drug to invest in its research and development." Incidentally, thes…

> Those poisonings are rare – so gathering enough data to satisfy the safety and efficacy requirements of the FDA takes time.

Since we're talking about something that cause death or liver transplant to such an enormous proportion of the patients (for efficiency, you just need a sample of 6 cases to get a result with p<0.05).

Re: A rash of nearly lethal mushroom poisonings in Ohio

#227

Post by bonoboTP »

dmitrybrant wrote: post #69

I've been foraging mushrooms for 30+ years, and I triple-check every single specimen before cooking it. The idea of a novice forager using an app to identify mushrooms is... unconscionable! Like... breathtakingly stupid. I've commented on this before, but it continues to baffle me how poorly-educated our public is about wild plants, berries, and mushrooms. And stories like this just perpetuate the fear (and stigma?)…

Now I wonder if this thing only exists in Hungary, but here there are lots of mushroom checking stations, typically near markets, where an expert checks your bag of mushrooms. They have an official license from the food safety authority and there is a central register for these mushroom experts.

My dad always brought the stuff we picked there, it was close by enough and it's just a totally normal thing here.

I would imagine it would be a nightmare to do this in the US due to legal liabilities.

Re: A rash of nearly lethal mushroom poisonings in Ohio

#228

Post by raverbashing »

Aloha wrote: post #130
nkurz wrote: post #44

Since no one has done it yet, I'll ask the obvious question about the FDA: how many people die or need a liver transplant each year because the FDA is being unreasonable here? Here's some quotes from the article: Approximately 40% of people who ingest the deadly Amanita mushrooms die or require a liver transplant, according to Dr. Pierre Gholam, the liver specialist at University Hospitals who treated Hickman. ... Th…

"Gholam says that the process of FDA approval for Silibinin is slow, primarily because it only works for amatoxin poisoning, from the Amanita mushroom species. Those poisonings are rare – so gathering enough data to satisfy the safety and efficacy requirements of the FDA takes time. And there is little financial incentive by the company that owns the drug to invest in its research and development." Incidentally, thes…

There's a difference between measuring safety against morning sickness in pregnant women and a drug that literally saves your life

Drug safety is important but I think we can agree you can't beat the alternative in the case of poison antidote

Re: A rash of nearly lethal mushroom poisonings in Ohio

#229

Post by smeej »

411111111111111 wrote: post #223
nkurz wrote: post #44

Since no one has done it yet, I'll ask the obvious question about the FDA: how many people die or need a liver transplant each year because the FDA is being unreasonable here? Here's some quotes from the article: Approximately 40% of people who ingest the deadly Amanita mushrooms die or require a liver transplant, according to Dr. Pierre Gholam, the liver specialist at University Hospitals who treated Hickman. ... Th…

> This literally takes an army of people working after hours,” said Gholam. “There are tireless, really unsung heroes at the UH research office who make this happen for every patient – they have to do this over and over and over.” Forty-seven times in the last 10 years to be exact. Ohh, the poor guys have to hand in 4.7 forms per year to get access to an unapproved medicine they need. I would've thought it was satire…

Why is something that's been approved in Europe for 30 years still waiting for FDA approval in the first place?

If they issue the medication immediately after the form is submitted, without further inquiry or scrutiny (which is actually good in the case of something this urgent), why are they even bothering keeping it under such lock and key anyway?

That's what would sound like satire to anyone without an unflinching faith in the importance of a nanny state.

Re: A rash of nearly lethal mushroom poisonings in Ohio

#230

Post by TomSwirly »

411111111111111 wrote: post #223
nkurz wrote: post #44

Since no one has done it yet, I'll ask the obvious question about the FDA: how many people die or need a liver transplant each year because the FDA is being unreasonable here? Here's some quotes from the article: Approximately 40% of people who ingest the deadly Amanita mushrooms die or require a liver transplant, according to Dr. Pierre Gholam, the liver specialist at University Hospitals who treated Hickman. ... Th…

> This literally takes an army of people working after hours,” said Gholam. “There are tireless, really unsung heroes at the UH research office who make this happen for every patient – they have to do this over and over and over.” Forty-seven times in the last 10 years to be exact. Ohh, the poor guys have to hand in 4.7 forms per year to get access to an unapproved medicine they need. I would've thought it was satire…

Oh, no, the amazing person is definitely you here.

Here's a life-saving drug that US pharmacists (only) are not allowed to stock; a drug that saves lives but only if given in a small time windows; and to get this drug you need to fill out a form and simply hope that someone happens to be working at whatever time you start to die.

And here you are, making fun of people who think this is a ridiculous idea!

Who wrote this? Death?

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