Psilocybin Missing From “Magic Mushroom” Edibles Sold in Portland
“Magic mushroom” edibles often lack psilocybin, instead containing undisclosed psychoactive or synthetic compounds.
“Magic mushroom” edibles are gaining popularity; however, a new study suggests what’s inside may not be what consumers expect.
Researchers at Oregon State University tested 12 products sold in Portland, Oregon, finding that none of the products contained psilocybin, but instead comprised a range of undisclosed psychoactive substances.
Psilocybin legalization drives growth in unregulated mushroom edibles
Psilocybin – the psychoactive compound in “magic mushrooms” – is getting more attention as a possible treatment for depression and substance use disorders. In Oregon, psilocybin was legalized for therapeutic use in 2020, with Colorado soon following in 2022.
With legalization and decriminalization in certain states, a market has opened for products labeled as “magic mushrooms”. These appear in smoke shops, convenience stores and online. However, many of these products are unregulated, meaning that there’s no guarantee of what ingredients are inside.
In 2024, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported 180 illnesses tied to 1 line of products called Diamond Shruumz™, including 73 hospitalizations and 3 deaths across 34 US states. Prior work also found “nootropics” and mushroom gummies labeled as Amanita muscaria or similar that in fact contained psilocybin or psilocin – both schedule I substances – without disclosure.
Nootropics
Substances, often called “smart drugs” or cognitive enhancers, that are claimed to improve mental functions such as memory, focus or creativity.
Schedule I substances
Drugs classified by the US Drug Enforcement Administration as having a high potential for abuse and no currently accepted medical use.
Despite these warnings, it is still unclear what many of these “magic mushroom” edibles contain. The tools for detecting synthetic analogues and mislabelled compounds are not yet widely used.
The new study aimed to analyze “magic mushroom” edibles sold in Portland, Oregon, to investigate whether they actually contain psilocybin.
Chemical analysis reveals psilocybin often absent from products
The researchers tested 12 products sold in Portland (11 gummies and 1 chocolate). They used several layers of chemical analysis, including liquid chromatography and mass spectrometry, to separate and identify compounds.
Although several products were labeled as containing psilocybin, chemical analysis detected none in the samples tested. Others listed muscimol or muscarine, hallucinogens from Amanita muscaria mushrooms, yet again, neither of these were detected. A number of products gave no information about active ingredients at all.
Psilocin – a compound closely related to psilocybin but not naturally stable in mushrooms – showed up in two gummies and the chocolate.
One gummy contained cannabinoids, including THC and CBD, and another contained kava extract, which has psychoactive properties; however, it is linked to liver toxicity. A different gummy contained caffeine, and two gummies contained synthetic tryptamines, or “syndelics” – lab-designed molecules based on psychedelic structures such as psilocybin and LSD. Four products contained no detectable psychoactive ingredients whatsoever.
Taken together, most of the products were adulterated with substances not listed on their labels. The contents varied widely, with no consistency between items marketed under the same broad category of “magic mushroom” edibles.
Mislabeling and adulteration create safety risks for psilocybin consumers
The findings indicate people buying “magic mushroom” gummies or chocolates may be ingesting drugs they aren’t aware of, some of which have never been tested in humans.
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“‘Syndelics’ represent a rapidly growing area of drug design, where medicinal chemists create novel compounds inspired by known psychedelic agents,” said lead author Dr. Richard van Breemen, a professor of pharmaceutical sciences in the Linus Pauling Institute at Oregon State University.
“Although this approach offers therapeutic potential for the discovery of drugs that might be useful for treating a range of mental health conditions, any new drug entity requires years of development to evaluate human safety and efficacy, and premature exposure to these compounds poses significant public health risks due to unknown pharmacology and toxicity,” he added.
Mislabeling and adulteration could undermine public trust in ongoing clinical research on psilocybin as a treatment. If consumers associate psilocybin with harmful or unpredictable experiences, it risks setting back work on therapies that are being studied under controlled conditions.
“For safety, psilocybin products require both analytical standardization and production that follows current Good Manufacturing Practices,” said van Breemen. “Advances in analytical chemistry are needed to detect new ‘syndelics’ and other adulterants in consumer products, to expose misbranding, to support law enforcement and regulatory agencies and to assist poison control centers and hospitals as they encounter overdoses caused by unknown compounds.”
The study may not reflect the full US market as only 12 products were tested, and all were bought in 1 city. Future work will need larger surveys across regions and product categories, as well as new methods to track emerging compounds.
Reference: Breemen RB van, Simchuk D, Fritzsche B, Huson D, Kuzdzal SA, Ferguson J. Active constituents of psilocybin mushroom edibles. JAMA Net Open. 2025. doi: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2025.31345
This article is a rework of a press release issued by Oregon State University. Material has been edited for length and content.
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