By Anabela Rea of 
Wild mushrooms such as the death cap, pictured, may be better off the menu. Here's how you can tell if you've been poisoned. Photo: Pixabay
Though wild mushrooms are often seen on restaurant menus, foraging for fungi is less popular in New Zealand than it is in Europe.
However, this means that Kiwis are less equipped to forage safely or to quickly identify poisoning when it rears its ugly head.
In the wake of this week's tragic wild mushroom poisoning deaths in Australia, it's perhaps more important than ever to not only know which mushrooms are safe to forage, but how to tell if you've been poisoned.
According to Family Doctor, common symptoms of mushroom poisoning include the following.
- Nausea
- Stomach cramps
- Vomiting
- Diarrhoea (sometimes bloody)
- Headache
- Dizziness
- Flushing (warm and red) in the face and abdomen
- Heart palpitations.
If you experience any of these symptoms after consuming wild mushrooms, seek immediate medical attention.
Whilst in the case of consuming deadly toxic mushrooms like the Death Cap, Funeral Bell and Destroying Angel, recovery may not be an option, receiving timely medical attention will be the difference between life and death.
Symptoms can appear directly after eating the fungi, or several hours later. Symptoms that occur within two hours are reportedly less dangerous than those that appear later (after six hours), but should still be clarified with a doctor for the best chance of recovery.
Death cap mushrooms, which look like a small white puff ball and often grow around the roots of trees, cause around 90 percent of mushroom-related deaths. Symptoms appear within 6 to 24 hours after eating and cause liver and kidney failure, diarrhoea and vomiting.
While once considered a home remedy against mushroom poisoning, ipecac syrup is no longer considered safe for consumption. If you are ill after eating mushrooms and are offered ipecac, turn it down and go and see your doctor instead.
The best protection against mushroom poisoning is, of course, not to eat them at all.
But if you just can't resist the call of the wild, do make sure that you forage safely and do your research both before and after picking.
Be aware that even with research, consuming wild mushrooms is a game of chance, with even doctors falling prey to serious illness after incorrect identification.
If you become ill after eating mushrooms, call the poisons centre on 0800 POISON / 0800 764 766 and get immediate medical attention calling 111.
* This story first was published by Stuff.
