German Authorities Issue Warning About Gummies Containing The Hallucinogenic Amanita Muscaria Mushroom

The German Federal Office for Consumer Protection and Food Safety issued a warning against gummy bears containing the hallucinogenic fly agaric mushroom toxin muscimol, reported ASB Zeitung.

Amanita muscaria, commonly known as the fly agaric or fly amanita, is a psychoactive mushroom with a distinct red or orange cap adorned with white dots and a tall white stalk. The toxin in question, muscimol, is extracted from the fungus of this mushroom.

The federal agency is warning against products from Berlin-based company Deutschen Cannabis Manufaktur (DCM), which are available online. These gummies, sold in a package of two with the following description: "First, you take a trip in the forest, then the forest takes you on a trip," writes The Berliner. The label also warns consumers that two gummies equal "serious stuff" and are "only for experienced users."

The Federal Office for Consumer Protection is not banning these products, just warning consumers of the possible negative effects. The agency cautions that these mushroom gummies are "harmful to health and are particularly dangerous for children, as the product can be confused with normal sweets."

Read Also: I Tried Amanita Muscaria, The ‘Delta-8 Of Mushrooms,’ Here’s How It Went

Muscimol is known to cause dizziness, nausea, fatigue, a feeling of weightlessness, visual and auditory hypersensitivity, space distortion, unawareness of time, and hallucinations, according to a paper published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine. "While some of these effects are similar to those associated with "classical psychedelics" like psilocybin, muscimol does not interact with serotonin 5-HT2A receptors, like psilocybin and other ‘classical psychedelics,'" the authors wrote.

The paper raises a case for improved regulation in "light of serious safety concerns." In the U.S., amanita muscaria is not on the Controlled Substances Act (CSA). Since states have the right to criminalize drugs that the Food and Drug Administration does not, Louisiana was quick to enforce a ban. It is possible that other states will follow, given the "potential toxicity concerns," writes Harris Sliwoski's attorney Griffen Thorne.

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