What types of fly agarics are there?
Amanita mushrooms belong to the genus of agaric mushrooms, numbering more than 600 different species. Most of them are inedible and, if consumed, can cause not only temporary consequences, but also death.
The caps of different types of fly agarics differ primarily in color. They can be yellow, white, pink, green, brown, orange or red. One of the most recognizable and widespread species in our area is the red fly agaric - with a wide cap dotted with white or yellow plates and a fleshy leg. In comparison with other species, it is considered very dangerous - for the level of poison in the body to reach a critical level, it is enough to eat only 5-6 caps.
Red fly agaric
Back in the 18th century, people discovered the toxic effects of fly agaric on certain types of insects and began to use it as an insecticide. This is how this genus got its characteristic name. The fact is that water dissolves the alkaloids contained in the mushroom cap well, so when insects come into contact with such a liquid, they fall asleep very quickly. Moreover, if after immobilizing the same fly you leave it in a dry place, it will not die, but will wake up and fly away in about 10-12 hours.
The most dangerous representatives of the fly agaric family also include:
Spring fly agaric
Spring fly agaric
is distinguished by a bright white wide cap with frequent scales. Due to similar symptoms of departure and appearance, it is often mistaken for the pale grebe, and sometimes even called the spring grebe. It is better to avoid this mushroom and under no circumstances eat it - for severe poisoning with possible death, even 2-3 caps are enough for a person.
Amanita stinking
Stinking fly agaric
- this mushroom is also white (sometimes with a dirty or pink tint), but its cap has a more dome shape. The species is mortally dangerous, so it cannot be eaten even in small quantities. Unfortunately, inexperienced mushroom pickers quite often mistake such fly agarics for champignons and then end up (and this is in the best case) in a hospital bed.
Green fly agaric or pale toadstool
The fly agaric is green
- its cap color varies from white to grayish or marsh. The cap itself is hemispherical and sometimes flat in shape. In appearance, the mushroom resembles some types of russula, but smart mushroom pickers will never confuse them, because fly agarics have a volva and a ring. An important danger factor of such a toadstool is that the symptoms of its release may not appear for up to 2 days. And while it seems to a person that everything is in order, intoxication of the body is in full swing.
Panther fly agaric
The panther fly agaric
has a brownish cap with numerous white “flakes” on it. The mushroom is known for its high toxicity and contains substances that are also characteristic of other dangerous plants, for example, henbane and dope. This species is similar to gray-pink fly agarics, which are considered edible, so beginners in the mushroom business often confuse them.
Second trip report
The next time I took mushrooms was on the morning of October 2, 2010. In the last few days before that, I collected almost a kilogram of Amanita amerimuscaria (one of the varieties of Amanita muscaria). They grew around pine trees. I dried the first batch overnight using a heater. I then completed this process by curing the mushrooms in the oven at 80°C to convert the ibotenic acid into muscimol, the psychic active compound in red fly agaric mushrooms. The next morning I decided to try them to determine their potency. I didn’t plan to go on a trip, but wanted to take 10 g of dried mushrooms to help me sleep better. This was a big mistake. I underestimated their power, which led to the most terrifying and perhaps the most physically painful experience of my life.
Late in the evening I weighed the caps, crushed them and prepared tea in the same way as last time. After drinking it, I waited about an hour. The effects were small and barely noticeable. I decided that these mushrooms were weak and went to bed.
A few hours later I woke up from unbearable physical pain. Something terrible was happening: I was in a white reality, and below me there was a red circle. I immediately started screaming in pain and fear. I suddenly felt like I had somehow died and gone to hell. I asked God to free me from this endless state of loneliness and unbearable physical pain. I did not suspect that I was under the influence of Amanita muscaria and did not notice any changes in consciousness. My mind seemed completely clear to me.
In reality, I most likely waved my arms and legs, but in that world I didn’t even suspect that I had a body. Every time I moved, I heard a rattling sound. With each swing of my invisible arms or legs, the red circle below me became a little larger. As I realized, I needed to continue to expand it in order to free myself. Or at least that's what I hoped for. Any movement of the arms and legs intensified the already excruciating pain. It felt like nails were driven into my wrists and feet, and the rattling sound was coming from me trying to pull them out. However, I did not see the nails themselves or what they were nailed to.
For over an hour I frantically tried to free my arms and legs to enlarge the red circle. All this time I was screaming at the top of my voice in pain. I asked God to forgive me for all the mistakes I made in life. It seemed like an eternity before the circle turned into something more recognizable and turned out to be the wooden floorboards of my bedroom. I felt great relief. At this point everything started to make sense. I realized that I had accidentally tripped by drinking mushroom tea, and the experience reminded me of the scene of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. I needed to pull the nails out of the invisible cross to which I was nailed so that I could be free.
It took about 15 minutes before I was able to pull the first nail out of my right wrist. I didn't see him fall, but I clearly heard the sound of him hitting the wooden floor. After that I started to free my other arm and then my legs. There were four invisible nails in total, one in each hand and each foot. When I got rid of them, the room began to take on its usual shape. I cried with happiness that this hellish experience was over and was grateful to have another chance.
Why shouldn't you try fly agarics?
Despite the fact that in some countries people have been successfully pickling/pickling fly agarics for many years, the risks that such a snack carries are not justified. Doctors and knowledgeable mushroom pickers advise mere mortals to stay away from these mushrooms. And there are a number of very logical reasons for this.
Scientists say that the toxic substances of fly agarics are largely concentrated in their white or brown plates. The older the mushroom becomes, the less lamellar design remains on it, and therefore over time it begins to pose less of a danger to the human body. This does not mean that old fly agarics can be eaten raw, but it does mean that the likelihood of poisoning from them is not so high.
Firstly, when a person is not an expert, it is very difficult for him to find the right type of fly agaric, and confusion in such a matter can end in failure. Secondly, even if you manage to find suitable mushrooms, they must be prepared in several stages, and you can easily make a mistake in this process the first time. Thirdly, the desire to taste something so exotic is not comparable to the problems that such a tasting can lead to.
The most typical consequences of eating fly agarics are given below:
- Depending on the type, after 6-24 hours the poisoned person begins to suffer from non-stop vomiting, intestinal pain, dehydration and severe diarrhea;
- Blood pressure decreases, as a result of which a person often loses consciousness. Due to acute cardiovascular failure, victims find themselves on the verge of life and death. And in most cases it ends in death.
- The danger also lies in the fact that at first the symptoms of fly agaric poisoning may not appear, although the body will suffer damage.
- The destruction of internal organs will continue during the so-called “period of false well-being,” which a person encounters on the 3rd day after consuming fly agarics. As a rule, this time period lasts 2-4 days, and death occurs approximately 10 days after poisoning.
Tinctures – benefit or poison?
If you understand how to prepare a fly agaric tincture, subject to strict adherence to the dosage of ingredients, you can obtain a product with immunostimulating properties. Some sources claim that such a medicine can fight cancer.
For external use, you can squeeze out the juice or prepare a special ointment for rubbing; for other types of treatment, it is advisable to use a tincture.
Is it possible to benefit from eating fly agaric mushrooms?
In some situations this is quite possible. The effectiveness of fly agarics as a medicine in traditional and folk medicine has been proven repeatedly.
Is it possible to eat fly agaric mushrooms?
Eating properly prepared mushrooms or their components will help a person minimize epileptic attacks and overcome some diseases of the nervous system. Experts also note the antiseptic effect of fly agarics and their positive effect on skin diseases (eczema, psoriasis, papillomas) and vascular function.
The fruiting body of the red fly agaric contains some psychoactive substances. In ancient times, various shamans used such mushrooms to communicate with spirits and achieve a state of trance. And now thrill-seekers do not hesitate to try them to obtain a sedative-hypnotic and dissociative effect. To bring the mushroom to the desired condition and achieve a psychotropic effect, it must be thoroughly dried, but even if everything is done correctly, no one is immune from side effects such as nausea, increased sweating and palpitations.
In most cases, you can benefit from fly agarics only after appropriate heat treatment, but since the fruiting bodies can contain different amounts of poison, the risk of consuming small amounts of harmful substances still remains.
To be fair, it is worth noting that this family also contains quite edible mushrooms. For example, in Mediterranean regions you can find the Caesar mushroom, which is considered a delicacy by Southern Europeans. And in the forests of mid-latitudes lives the gray-pink fly agaric, which attracts the attention of experienced mushroom pickers with its taste and summer ripening period. This type can be baked, fried or dried, and sometimes even used raw for salads.
Caesar's mushroom (left) and gray-pink fly agaric (right)
Tinctures for joints
Ingredients: ten mushroom caps, one hundred grams of vodka.
How to prepare medicine from fly agarics for joint pain? The washed caps are cut into thin slices. Then you need to take an opaque glass bottle, place the mushrooms in it and fill it with vodka. The tincture is aged for exactly seven days, then filtered and rubbed into the affected joints.
The medicine turns out to be quite concentrated, so it is recommended to wash your hands thoroughly after using it.
Is it possible to eat fly agarics?
As you can see, eating fly agarics is a double-edged sword. On the one hand, these mushrooms contain many toxic substances and should repel even the most curious mushroom pickers. On the other hand, they are considered an exotic dish and, with the proper approach, can help a person solve some serious health problems.
Considering the ambiguous attitude of scientists towards this genus of agaric mushrooms, you can eat fly agarics only at your own peril and risk. Proper heat treatment, which involves several stages, is important here.
If you follow a proven recipe when marinating or salting, you will certainly protect yourself from potential poisoning. But if you have never done anything like this before, you better think twice before engaging in such extreme activities. One wrong move and you'll end up in a hospital bed.
Alcohol ulcer tinctures
Ingredients: kg of mushrooms, half a liter of alcohol.
How to prepare fly agarics to get a tincture for ulcers? Cleaned mushrooms are placed in a glass container and filled with an alcohol solution. It is better to place the mixture in a dark, cool place (in villages this is a cellar) and leave for a week. After the period has expired, the solution is filtered and used for its intended purpose.
Reception scheme
- Regardless of the disease, use of the tincture begins with one drop. It is very convenient to take this dosage with a pipette. The medicine must be washed down with a glass of water.
- Day by day the number of drops is increased to twenty.
- A dosage of 20 drops should be taken for five days, then the dosage regimen begins to move in the reverse order, that is, in the direction of decrease.
This is a standard regimen for taking fly agaric tincture.
Note
If you feel worse after taking 5 drops, you need to stop at this dosage for several days. After this, the course of treatment continues according to the standard regimen.
Observation by a doctor is mandatory. Fly agarics, the use of which is not controlled, are dangerous.
After taking the tincture, rest is necessary.
Tinctures for cancer
Homemade preparation of fly agarics to obtain a medicine that will help fight cancer is often viewed with skepticism. Meanwhile, the poisonous mushroom contains a high concentration of cyclic hydroxamic acid, which is used in official medicine as an integral part of anti-cancer drugs.
In order to prepare the medicine, you will need only the caps of young mushrooms. They are first kept in a cool, dark place for about three days. After this, they are placed in glass jars entirely up to the very edge. The container is filled with vodka or alcohol and buried in the ground “up to the shoulders” for three months.
When the specified time has elapsed, the mushrooms are squeezed out, the liquid is filtered and stored in the refrigerator.
It is customary to take the tincture according to the standard scheme “from one drop to twenty”.
Ointments
To prepare the ointment, you will need to first dry the mushrooms. This is easy to do in the oven over low heat, lining a baking sheet with baking paper.
Ingredients: 30 grams of dry powder, 10 gr. coarse rye flour, 10 gr. coniferous resin, 50 grams of lard.
Method of preparation: all components are thoroughly mixed and heated in a water bath. As a result of heating, the consistency will become viscous and homogeneous.
How to use: pre-warm up the joints with a light massage. The ointment is applied to painful areas at night.
