US researchers call for better education, tracking, and health system preparedness in response to a substantial increase in poison center calls on psilocybin use. The team from the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus notes that significantly more US citizens are using the hallucinogenic chemical found in “magic” mushrooms since 2019, mainly for mental health conditions. Between 2019 and 2023, lifetime use among adults rose from 10%, or 25 million people, to 12.1%, or over 31 million people. At the same time, psilocybin-related poison center calls grew 201% in adults, 317% in teens, and 723% in children.
