- Oregon officials are leaning toward a “magic” type of mushroom to legalize in 2023 for therapeutic use.
- The state will become the first to legally implement psilocybin, the active compound in “magic” mushrooms.
- Experts told Insider that Psilocybe cubensis, the chosen species, is the most cultivated.
Oregon is on track to become the first U.S. state to introduce legal psilocybin, the psychoactive substance found in “magic” mushrooms. Now, officials plan to give the green light to a specific species of “magic” mushrooms for therapeutic use in the state starting in 2023.
Laboratory-made psilocybin, along with therapy, has shown promise in clinical trials for the treatment of serious diseases.
depression
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Jessie K. Uehling, a mycologist and member of the Oregon Psilocybin Advisory Board, told Insider that Oregon is focusing on a species called Psilocybe cubensis because it is widely cultivated and easy to grow.
While almost any species of magic mushroom can be grown, Psilocybe cubensis in particular grows very quickly with “pretty good yields,” said Alan Rockefeller, an Oakland, California-based mycologist.
Unlike a handful of other “magic” mushroom species, including those that grow in the Pacific Northwest, Psilocybe cubensis is not associated with paralysis of wood lovers, according to Uehling.
Paralysis of wood lovers is the name of an anecdotal condition in which people say they have been temporarily paralyzed after eating certain “magic” mushrooms that tend to grow on wood.
Not all mushroom experts agree with Oregon’s decision to delve into a “magical” mushroom species.
Rockefeller told Insider he believes people should be able to choose which species they take.
“Of about 200 mushrooms, there are perhaps four that cause paralysis to wood lovers,” he said.
“I think the Oregon issue is still good. But if I were in the lead, I wouldn’t have restricted it to a single species,” added Rockefeller, who is not on Oregon’s advisory board.
Regardless of the species, growing “magic” mushrooms is relatively inexpensive.
“It costs about the same amount to grow psilocybin mushrooms as it does to grow the mushrooms you see in the supermarket,” Rockefeller said, referring to all “magic” mushroom species.
Seemingly poisonous
Draft rules for legalization allow Oregon people to consume Psilocybe cubensis as a whole mushroom, a powdered product, or an extract.
Mycology, the study of fungi, is a relatively young field and there is not enough data on all psilocybin-producing fungal species to design the tests needed to distinguish between different species, Uehling said. But there will likely be companies in the state that have licenses to sell legal mushrooms that produce psilocybin.
Experts said people can generally identify “magic” mushrooms by looking at them, unless they are in powder form. They can also distinguish between a poisonous mushroom and one that is safe to consume.
“When you grow a mushroom, you only put one crop in it, so you know what you’re growing because you know what you’re putting in it. It’s not like you’re going to accidentally grow something poisonous,” Rockefeller said, adding. that a poisonous mushroom would look different. “Looking at it, you can see it’s blooming, in the same way it would look like a rotten apple and you’d say, no, this one I don’t eat.”
Still, all the experts Insider spoke with warned about poisonous resemblances to nature.
“If you’re going to look for food, be careful. There are poisonous mushrooms similar to the environment. There are resources available online,” said Caine Barlow, a mycologist in Australia.
