Woman dies after eating death cap mushroom
Foragers are again being warned to be extra careful after a woman in Bridgwater, Somerset, died after finding and eating a poisonous death cap mushroom in her garden.
According to the Somerset County Gazette, Christina Hale, 57, died from multiple organ failure after eating the mushrooms. Her husband was also treated after eating some of the batch, but has since been discharged from hospital.
An inquest has been opened and adjourned into the death last week at Musgrove Park Hospital, Taunton.
When eaten, there are no symptoms for around 12 hours. An individual would then experience vomiting, diarrhoea and cramps.
Subsequently, the person would then feel fine, but three or four days later they would suffer kidney or liver failure and die five to 10 days after eating the death caps.
Dr John Thompson of the National Poisons Information Service said: "While many mushrooms growing in the wild are tasty and safe to eat, it isn't always easy to differentiate between toxic and non-toxic species, even for people with experience in foraging.
"We advise people not to eat mushrooms collected in the wild unless they're familiar with the various species which grow in the UK and are sure the mushrooms they've collected are safe."
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By Lisa Jenkins
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