Hey there guys, I'm Jesse Crowe, The Travelling Scientist
And today I want to talk all about Magic Mushrooms, answering 3 key questions
How do they act in the body?
Are they safe to use?
And what to do if you have too many Magic Mushrooms?
Magic Mushrooms grow in the ground and they contain a chemical called Psilocybin
Upon ingestion, this chemical is metabolised into Psilocin
Which then moves into the bloodstream and Psilocin is structurally similar to Serotonin
So it binds to the Serotonin receptors in your brain and has 2 main effects
1: It's stops Serotonin from being taken back up into your nerves, increasing the Serotonin effect
And 2: It also binds to the serotonin receptors to amplify those feelings of euphoria!
About 30 minutes after taking Magic Mushrooms
You'll start to feel euphoric, delusional, and you might even start to hallucinate
This is because Psilocin causes your brain to temporarily rearrange its neural networks
and as chemical messages pass through these new and undefined pathways
you'll start to experience really vivid and unusual new perspectives of your environment
And this is gonna last for 3 to 6 hours, depending on how much psilocybin you actually consume
If you consume too much psilocybin, you'll start to experience some negative effects
You'll be restless, uncoordinated, anxious, and you might even freak out!
This is known as a BAD TRIP mannn!
Luckily it's almost impossible to overdose on Magic Mushrooms
Theoretically, you would need to consume 19 grams of pure Psilocybin
Although it varies, mushrooms are usually about one percent Psilocybin by weight
so that means you would need to consume 1.9 kilograms worth of Magic Mushrooms
That's like an INSANE amount of mushrooms...
Just don't eat that many, don't do it... Why would...Why would you eat that many mushrooms!?
The biggest danger when using Magic Mushrooms is getting the wrong kind of Mushroom
See, in the wild, Magic Mushrooms are easily mistaken for other types of Mushrooms
That might be non-edible or might even be poisonous
This also means that you could mistake normal Mushrooms for Magic Mushrooms...
Imagine if you were cooking a meal for your friends and you want some fresh mushrooms
and you ACCIDENTALLY used Magic Mushrooms instead...
We all know what's gonna happen there
That would be a CRAZY evening, so don't go out and just pick random Mushrooms... Don't do it!
The most toxic Mushroom is called Amanita Phalloides
and...I think I pronounced that right...
But I know that it causes 95% of death by Mushroom poisonings
Eating them leads to Hyperglycemia and organ failure...so don't eat them!
Another thing to consider is that Magic Mushrooms show a WIDE variety in potency
One mushroom might contain only a minuscule amount of Psilocybin
while the next mushroom can contain 2 or 3 times as much of the same chemical!
So that's something important to keep in mind
If someone has had too many Magic Mushrooms
They might feel nauseous, anxious, paranoid, agitated, even psychotic!
Knowing the Mushroom species can be really helpful
Unfortunately, you're probably not an experienced Mycologist, I HIGHLY doubt that!
And if you ARE... can you send me an email?
If you not a Mycologist and you can't work out what species of Mushroom it is, it's best just to treat the symptoms
It is really important to talk to them!
Try and calm them down, take them to a quiet place and offer the mental support
And if this isn't an option, or if they're just too sick
That is when you should seek medical treatment
A Doctor can take care of them and keep them safe until they're feeling better
And for more information, checkout www.tripsafe.org
It is a really great website that offers a lot of information about hallucinogens like Magic Mushrooms
Anyway, that's all for today guys
Thanks so much for watching
If you learned something in this video, click the Like button down below!
And if you have any questions about Magic Mushrooms
Let us know in the Comments section down below
Finally, next week's video is gonna be all about LSD or Acid
So that's gonna be really cool!
Make sure you are Subscribed for more Travelling Science every single week
I'll see you guys next time
Cheers!
FUN FACT
Oh...I don't have a fun fact...awww
No-one, not even a fungus freak would eat that many Mushrooms!
Unfortunately, you are NOT an experienced Mycologist, are you?
ARE YOU? Yeah, I didn't think so!