In recent years, psychedelics have shifted from being symbols of hippie counterculture to becoming tools embraced by scientists, therapists, and even lawmakers. The United States was an epicenter of this shift: Oregon regulated psilocybin therapy through Measure 109 in 2020, and other states have considered following suit.
However, the market’s expansion has also brought new risks, like products sold as “magic mushrooms” that do not actually contain psilocybin, the compound that produces psychedelic effects. So, what’s going on?
The study that raised alarms
Researchers at Oregon State University (OSU) analyzed 12 edibles (11 gummies and a chocolate bar) sold in Portland stores under the label “magic mushroom edibles.” They were purchased and tested at Rose City Labs, in collaboration with OSU and Shimadzu, the company that supplied the analytical equipment. The results were disturbing: none of the products contained psilocybin, the classic active compound in shrooms. Though the sample size was small, the extent of mislabeling made the findings significant.
Instead, the testing revealed other substances: kava, caffeine, THC, hemp extracts, and even synthetic compounds such as 4-AcO-MiPT and 4-HO-DET, psychedelics from the tryptamine family. Other samples contained muscimol, the active active compound of the Amanita muscaria mushroom, a different species from Psilocybe, with very different pharmacology.
Furthermore, some samples did not contain natural psilocybin, but rather small amounts of psilocin, the active molecule into which psilocybin is normally converted within the body. In this case, the researchers noted that the psilocin did not come from actual mushrooms, but had likely been synthesized in a laboratory.
“We don’t know what harm they might cause,” cautioned Richard van Breemen, co-author of the study and professor at OSU.
Syndelics: The Rise of Lab-made Psychedelics
The research brought so-called syndelics, short for synthetic psychedelics, into the spotlight. The term syndelics was coined by a collaboration between OSU, Rose City Laboratories, and Shimadzu. These compounds are created by chemists to mimic psilocybin or LSD. The problem? Their long-term effects are virtually unknown.
As stated by the researchers: “Many unregulated retail magic mushroom edibles lack psilocybin and are adulterated with synthetic tryptamines, botanicals, or other undeclared compounds… Mislabeling and ingredient substitution endanger consumers and erode public trust in emerging psychedelic therapies.”
Van Breemen elaborated further: “Syndelics represent a rapidly growing area of drug design… Although this approach offers therapeutic potential…premature exposure to these compounds poses significant public health risks due to unknown pharmacology and toxicity.”
The study concludes with a call for improved testing standards, stricter regulations, and enforcement at both the state and federal levels.
Shrooms in Oregon: Between Legality and the Illicit Market
Oregon was a pioneer in approving psilocybin for regulated therapies in 2020. However, this access is limited to guided, expensive treatments under strict conditions. At the federal level, psilocybin remains a Schedule I substance, meaning it’s illegal and difficult to obtain.
Given this context, it’s not surprising that many users seek more accessible, cheaper alternatives at local stores or online. The risk, of course, is that what they buy isn’t what the label promises.
As Mason Marks, a law professor at Florida State University, explained: “A lot of people are very curious about these substances. And if you’re in a state, like Oregon, where recreational sales remain illegal, people might, people might go to these shops and buy these products that are either blatantly illegal or kind of in this gray area.”
In other words, therapeutic use within licensed programs is permitted, but retail sales remain illegal. This has created a gray market that, experts warn, exploits demand.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) had previously warned about the danger of unregulated products containing Amanita muscaria, another mushroom with strong psychoactive effects. In 2024, the organization issued a statement following a mass recall of these products due to suspected poisonings and at least some reported deaths.
New evidence reinforces that warning: products sold in Oregon as “magic mushroom edibles” are not only mislabeled, but also include little-studied and potentially dangerous substances.
The finding is worrying, as it comes at a time when society is debating the place of psychedelics in mental health, with studies showing that psilocybin can help with drug-resistant depression and promote neuroplasticity. But the existence of a parallel market, rife with misleading products and substitutes, undermines trust in psychedelic therapies and puts users at risk.
The challenge now is twofold. On the one hand, there’s the need to sustain rigorous, regulated research that can open promising therapeutic avenues. On the other, there’s the need to rein in a market that exploits growing demand with products that, at best, do nothing and can, at worst, be dangerous.
This article was first published on El Planteo.
