More than 900 calls about mushroom poisonings in South Australia over the past decade
Hundreds of people have been treated in South Australian hospitals in the past decade for mushroom poisonings, it can be revealed – with half of them children aged under 5.
SA News
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More than 300 people have needed treatment in South Australian hospitals after eating wild mushrooms in the past decade — half of them children aged under 5.
The Poisons Information Centre received 904 panicked calls about suspected mushroom poisonings between 2013 and 2022, and in the first quarter of this year had dealt with 30 calls.
These included 561 cases involving children aged under 5.
Referrals to SA hospitals from the centre and cases already in hospital totalled 323 between 2013 and 2022, while there have been seven cases in the first quarter of this year.
These have included 163 cases involving children aged under 5.
A statement from SA Health warns of the dangers of eating wild mushrooms.
“SA Health strongly advises not to eat any wild mushroom and to keep a close eye on children, as well as pets, when outside to prevent contact,” it states.
“There is no simple reliable test or visualisation tool that shows which wild mushrooms are safe to eat. Even mushroom experts can have difficulty identifying some species.
“Ingesting several varieties including death-cap mushrooms can cause serious illness or death. “Poisoning may have delayed onset of symptoms – up to 24-hours – and can cause life-threatening liver damage.
“If you suspect you or someone you know has eaten a wild mushroom, do not wait for symptoms to appear. — contact the Poisons Information Centre on 131 126 for advice and always call triple-0 in an emergency.”
SA Health previously has issued public health warnings over death-cap mushrooms found growing in the Adelaide Hills.
Experts say the window for treatment to prevent liver damage from poisonous mushrooms is narrow and symptoms may take hours to appear.
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