Be careful what you eat! Information on Shrooms
Special mushrooms, also called “shrooms” or magic mushrooms, are another interesting type of legal high. The only difference between shrooms and your common mushroom is that the former contain psychedelic or mind-altering substances.
One variety of shroom, the Pantherina Mushroom contains poison and for centuries has been used by shamans and diviners in order to reach higher states of consciousness for the purpose of mental expansion and enlightenment.
Another shroom, the Fly Agaric Mushroom is considered unfit for human consumption just like the Pantherina Mushroom. The psychoactive chemicals of the Fly Agaric Mushroom, especially muscimol, may trigger hallucinations if ingested. Legends say that the ancient shamans used the Fly Agaric Mushrooms in order to gain insight into the spirit world and the Vikings chewed on this shroom to convert themselves to a “berserker” state before battle.
The psilocybin and psilocin mushrooms, which are generally grown in Central America and Mexico, are shrooms that are just as psychedelic and potent as the Pantherina and Fly Agaric but are not poisonous. This variety of magic mushroom, which have been used in ancient American shamanic rituals for thousands of years, can be chewed one gramme after another in order to experience its hallucinogenic effects, as well as interestingly distorted perceptions of sound, touch and taste. Psilocybin is similar to serotonin in chemical structure and therefore disrupts the normal functioning of the serotonin system. Serotonin is a chemical naturally produced by the body for the regulation of appetite, sleep, sexual behaviour and many others.
Shrooms are sold as dried mushrooms that can be eaten, brewed or prepared as tea.