FRIDAY, July 19, 2024 (HealthDay News) -- Mushroom gummies being sold to promote brain function might instead contain harmful ingredients not listed on the label, including illicit psilocybin, the hallucinogen found in “magic” mushrooms, experts warn in a new report.

Five people in Virginia, including a 3-year-old child, have been sickened by the gummies, University of Virginia doctors said.

The gummies claimed to contain the Amanita muscaria mushroom or a proprietary mushroom blend, researchers said.

Amanita muscaria mushrooms, also known as fly agaric, are not classified as a scheduled drug by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

But lab analysis found psilocybin or psilocin in 3 of 5 different brands of gummies bought in central Virginia gas stations and smoke shops. These “magic” mushroom chemicals are classified as illicit drugs by the FDA, researchers noted.

“While we anticipated that we might find some undisclosed ingredients, we were surprised to find psilocybin and psilocin, knowing that they are scheduled drugs,” said researcher Lindsay Bazydlo, medical director of UVA Health’s Toxicology Laboratory. “The consumer should be given accurate information about what substances are included in these products.”

Other ingredients found in the gummies -- but not listed on packaging -- included caffeine, ephedrine and kratom. Kratom is an herb that produces opioid-like effects and carries a risk of addiction.

“People tend to equate ‘legal’ with ‘safe,’ which is not necessarily the case. These products are not regulated and can contain any number of unlabeled substances which, when consumed, can cause undesired symptoms,” said researcher Dr. Avery Michienzi, assistant medical director with UVA’s Blue Ridge Poison Center.

Four adults seen in the UVA Health Medical Center emergency room in September and November had consumed the mushroom gummies intentionally, researchers said.

But the child, seen this June, had consumed two gummies accidentally.

All were treated and released, but the child required an overnight hospital stay.

Researchers are warning that people who buy these mushroom gummies have no way of knowing what they’re putting into their bodies, as the products are unregulated.

“Some packages will have QR codes showing that the products were tested in a lab and contain only what they are labeled to contain,” Michienzi said in a university news release. “These have been found to be inaccurate.”

For this study, researchers bought three brands claiming to have the same ingredients as the gummies that sickened the five patients. They also bought two other brands claiming to contain “mushroom nootropics” – a trendy term that implies a substance will improve cognition and brain health.

Symptoms caused by these gummies can include hallucinations, racing heartbeat, upset stomach and altered mental state, doctors said. Typical hospital drug screens will not detect the substances that were found in the gummies.

These findings were published July 18 in the CDC publication Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.

More information

The University of California, San Diego, has more on Amanita muscaria mushrooms.

SOURCE: University of Virginia, news release, July 18, 2024