The hallucinogenic effect is comparable to that of an Apple headset? Beijing also has these "deadly" fungi

It is the peak season for wild mushrooms. It is not uncommon to accidentally eat poisonous mushrooms. There are more than 400 common poisonous mushrooms in my country. Which ones are common in Beijing? How poisonous are they? A picture will help you understand.

Compiled by reporter Ding Lin, drawn by Chai Qingyan

Last week, after Apple released its $3,500 mixed reality headset, Vision Pro, Tesla CEO Elon Musk posted a post on social media to complain that the Apple headset was too expensive and not worth buying, comparing it to hallucinogenic mushrooms.

Domestic technology self-media also made an in-depth comparison between Vision Pro and the famous "Yunnan Boletus":

Can poisonous mushrooms really be used as a "cheap substitute" for expensive headsets? The answer is of course no . Some wild mushrooms contain toxins that cause neuro-psychiatric reactions, which may cause hallucinations and other side effects. For example, the brown boletus, commonly known as "red hands", will first cause dizziness, nausea, and vomiting after eating, and then there will be irritability, auditory hallucinations, hallucinations, delusions and other strange behaviors. A few people also have persecution delusions, symptoms similar to schizophrenia, and even self-harm and harm to others.

In addition to neuropsychiatric intoxication, other types of mushroom poisoning include:

● Gastroenteritis type with acute nausea and vomiting, which may cause vomiting of blood, coma, and organ failure leading to death in severe cases;

● Hemolytic type with acute anemia, hemoglobinuria, hepatomegaly and splenomegaly. In severe cases, patients may suffer from weak pulse, convulsions, hallucinations and drowsiness, and may die from severe liver and kidney damage and heart failure;

● Liver damage type: if rescue is not timely, the mortality rate can be as high as 60%-80%.

From ancient times to the present, wild edible mushrooms have always been regarded as "mountain treasures". Many people have a fascinated pursuit of "wild", especially wild mushrooms. What makes food lovers salivate is not only the crisp taste of wild edible mushrooms, but also the umami substances in the pot. However, there are many kinds of wild mushrooms, and some poisonous and non-toxic varieties look similar. Even professionals find it difficult to distinguish them based on appearance alone. Some methods of "distinguishing whether mushrooms are poisonous" circulated among the people are even more unreliable.

May to October every year is the peak period for wild mushroom poisoning incidents, especially June to July, which is the growing season for many liver-damaging and highly toxic mushrooms such as Amanita. As the temperature gradually rises, various wild mushrooms grow vigorously in the upcoming rainy season, and poisoning incidents due to mistakenly picking or eating poisonous mushrooms may occur.

According to statistics from the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, from 2010 to 2020, there were 10,036 mushroom poisoning incidents in my country, more than 38,000 people were poisoned, and 788 people died after failed treatment.

According to the Beijing Center for Disease Control and Prevention, the brown-scaled ring-shaped mushroom is one of the most toxic mushrooms in the city. Ingestion may cause nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, diarrhea and other symptoms in the early stage. After 1 to 2 days, the symptoms of acute gastroenteritis are alleviated and liver damage occurs. Patients usually feel that they have "recovered" and miss the best treatment period, which eventually leads to acute liver failure, multi-organ failure, and even death.

From 2019 to 2021, the fleshy brown scale ring-shaped mushroom caused at least 35 poisoning incidents in my country, poisoning 85 people and killing 8 people. It is a veritable small big "mushroom" king! In addition, common poisonous mushrooms in Beijing include the crystal grain cap mushroom that may cause gastroenteritis-type poisoning and the mycelium mushroom that causes neuropsychiatric poisoning.

Wild mushroom poisoning is a serious disease, and there is no specific medicine. To prevent the occurrence of poisoning accidents caused by wild mushrooms, the Municipal Center for Disease Control and Prevention calls on the public not to pick, buy, sell or eat wild mushrooms, and not to gamble with their lives and health. In the event of accidental poisoning, seek medical attention as soon as possible.

(Part of the content comes from Science and Technology Daily, Beijing Daily, and the WeChat public account of "Beijing Center for Disease Control and Prevention", etc.)