WHY DEADLY DRUG IS STILL PERFECTLY LEGAL
06 May 2004
Magic mushrooms look harmless. They are legal and readily available at your local market. But they contain a Class A drug and bring on hallucinations similar to an LSD trip. Aleisha Scott reports ...
YOU can cook them up in a soup, as tea or even in an omelette, but magic mushrooms are no ordinary vegetable.
The Aztecs called them the flesh of the gods and they were a staple of the psychedelic movement in the 1960s.
Also known as shrooms, mushies, liberty caps or fly-agarics, magic mushrooms, both raw and cooked, can have a hallucinogenic effect similar to cannabis or, in a stronger dose, can induce LSD-like trips.
Most types of mushrooms contain psilocin, a hallucinogen, and psilocybin - both controlled Class A drugs.
Fly-agaric mushrooms contain mycoatropine and muscarine chemicals which irritate the brain and have a hallucinogenic effect. They can also cause sweating, delerium and result in coma or even death.
Yet magic mushrooms are not controlled under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 and are perfectly legal to sell and eat in their natural raw form. But it is a criminal offence if the mushroom is altered from its natural form by cooking, freezing, drying or packaging for sale.
A conviction for possession of a prepared magic mushroom can lead to a maximum of seven years in prison and an unlimited fine.
Conviction for supply or intent to supply can lead to life imprisonment and an unlimited fine.
Magic mushrooms grow wild in Britain but are generally imported for sale from Holland. They can be eaten raw or cooked, heated with water to make a tea or soup, or added to an omelette or another dish just like non-hallucinogenic mushrooms.
It can take about an hour for the mushrooms to take effect.
If a mushroom contains only a small amount of the hallucinogenic substances the person will feel relaxed - a feeling similar to using cannabis. A higher dose can induce a LSD-type trip which could last six to 12 hours.
The physical effects of a 'shroom' trip include increased heart rate and blood pressure, dilated pupils, and mild stomach upset. Some species of mushroom can be highly poisonous and symptoms of mushroom poisoning can take from 20 minutes to 40 hours to manifest.
The most common symptoms are vomiting, diarrhoea, jaundice and breathing difficulties.
As with LSD, tolerance to the active ingredients in hallucinogenic mushrooms develops quickly and it may take twice the original dose to produce the same effect after the first trip.
Mushrooms are now sold in four common varieties, with increasing hallucinogenic effects from the Mexican, the Colombian and the Thai to the Philosopher's Stone.
Oasis, a charity which supports families affected by alcohol and drug misuse, is concerned that magic mushrooms were readily available at Lincoln's market.
Co-ordinator Terry Walter said: "Magic mushrooms are not as harmless as people may think. Anything that is a mind-altering substance is dangerous.
"I think the law on the sale of magic mushrooms should be tightened up.
"It is worrying to know they are on sale to anyone in Lincoln. I think that the fact that they are readily available must be a temptation to children. But if someone wants to get hold of drugs they will do."
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06 May 2004
Magic mushrooms look harmless. They are legal and readily available at your local market. But they contain a Class A drug and bring on hallucinations similar to an LSD trip. Aleisha Scott reports ...
YOU can cook them up in a soup, as tea or even in an omelette, but magic mushrooms are no ordinary vegetable.
The Aztecs called them the flesh of the gods and they were a staple of the psychedelic movement in the 1960s.
Also known as shrooms, mushies, liberty caps or fly-agarics, magic mushrooms, both raw and cooked, can have a hallucinogenic effect similar to cannabis or, in a stronger dose, can induce LSD-like trips.
Most types of mushrooms contain psilocin, a hallucinogen, and psilocybin - both controlled Class A drugs.
Fly-agaric mushrooms contain mycoatropine and muscarine chemicals which irritate the brain and have a hallucinogenic effect. They can also cause sweating, delerium and result in coma or even death.
Yet magic mushrooms are not controlled under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 and are perfectly legal to sell and eat in their natural raw form. But it is a criminal offence if the mushroom is altered from its natural form by cooking, freezing, drying or packaging for sale.
A conviction for possession of a prepared magic mushroom can lead to a maximum of seven years in prison and an unlimited fine.
Conviction for supply or intent to supply can lead to life imprisonment and an unlimited fine.
Magic mushrooms grow wild in Britain but are generally imported for sale from Holland. They can be eaten raw or cooked, heated with water to make a tea or soup, or added to an omelette or another dish just like non-hallucinogenic mushrooms.
It can take about an hour for the mushrooms to take effect.
If a mushroom contains only a small amount of the hallucinogenic substances the person will feel relaxed - a feeling similar to using cannabis. A higher dose can induce a LSD-type trip which could last six to 12 hours.
The physical effects of a 'shroom' trip include increased heart rate and blood pressure, dilated pupils, and mild stomach upset. Some species of mushroom can be highly poisonous and symptoms of mushroom poisoning can take from 20 minutes to 40 hours to manifest.
The most common symptoms are vomiting, diarrhoea, jaundice and breathing difficulties.
As with LSD, tolerance to the active ingredients in hallucinogenic mushrooms develops quickly and it may take twice the original dose to produce the same effect after the first trip.
Mushrooms are now sold in four common varieties, with increasing hallucinogenic effects from the Mexican, the Colombian and the Thai to the Philosopher's Stone.
Oasis, a charity which supports families affected by alcohol and drug misuse, is concerned that magic mushrooms were readily available at Lincoln's market.
Co-ordinator Terry Walter said: "Magic mushrooms are not as harmless as people may think. Anything that is a mind-altering substance is dangerous.
"I think the law on the sale of magic mushrooms should be tightened up.
"It is worrying to know they are on sale to anyone in Lincoln. I think that the fact that they are readily available must be a temptation to children. But if someone wants to get hold of drugs they will do."
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