CDPH: Don’t Eat This Brand of ‘Magic Mushroom’ Gummies, Chocolates and Syrups

The California Department of Public Health on Thursday warned residents not to use a line of “magic mushroom” products sold online and at smoke shops throughout the state, which they’ve determined contain illegal and dangerous psychedelic compounds.

The state agency said they’ve discovered that some of the mushroom chocolate bars, syrups and gummies made by TRE House, a Los Angeles-based company that also makes THC and hemp “recreational products,” contain an equivalent of the illegal psychedelic psilocin.

“These food products have the potential to cause severe adverse health effects, including hospitalization and even death,” CDPH said in a statement. “The risk of misuse, overuse, or negative interactions with other medications is high, especially without oversight or consultation with medical professionals.”

While psychedelics have been decriminalized in two states and some California cities, and there’s growing momentum to widen medical and recreational use, so-called “magic mushrooms,” and their synthetic variants, remain illegal.

TRE House’s line of mushroom products, which they say “may cause psychotropic effects,” contains a “Magic Mushroom Microdose Blend” and “Proprietary Nootropic Mushroom Blend.” The ingredients listed online for its magic mushroom gummies don’t include psychedelics, but include a form of gabapentin, along with a variety of mushrooms that could be found in most health food stores, like lion’s mane, chaga and cordyceps.

TRE House’s publicly-posted lab reports from as recently as Dec. 8 say no psilocin and psilocybin, another illegal psychedelic, were detected in mushroom gummies, syrups, chocolates and vapes.

But the CDPH said its laboratory testing found that products contained two illegal analogues of psilocin: 4-Acetoxy-DET and 4-Acetoxy-DMT, as well as synthetic mushroom-based psychoactive drugs. The compounds are considered Schedule 1 drugs by the Drug Enforcement Administration.

TRE House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Dr. John Gray, associate director of UC Davis’s Institute for Psychedelics and Neurotherapeutics, said it’s possible that CDPH could be cracking down on TRE House specifically because of their use of artificial compounds, since synthetics are often easier to regulate.

Officials said that no illnesses associated with the products have been reported, but that “individuals looking for psychedelic mushroom products for therapeutic effects run the risk of serious or life-threatening illness.”

The packaging of the products as syrups and sweets could also be dangerous for children, who might view them as regular candies and chocolates, according to CDPH.

The form can make it easy for children and adults to overdo it: edibles are often dosed by one square of chocolate or a single gummy, compared to a whole bar or bag you might eat as a snack.

While many of these products are considered medically safe in small amounts, they can increase heart rate and blood pressure, body temperature and the risk of serotonin syndrome for people on serotonin-based prescription drugs if overused.

CDPH said it is investigating TRE House and its manufacturers, and that more than 1,000 lbs of the brand’s products have been destroyed. The company could face civil or criminal penalties pending further investigation.