Boletus

Animal and lab studies only

• Open question

  Mushroom food poisoning¹¹

  Boletus edulis porcini contain proteins that harmed human cells, and heat treatment at 90 °C then breakdown stopped this.

Study type not stated

• Benefit

  Mushroom nutrition and health⁶

  Boletus mushrooms are rich in carbs and protein, and contain substances that may support health, though scientists are still studying how.

Found in some samples or products

These come from where it was grown, how it was processed or cooked, or what it was made into. They are not about the ingredient itself, so the signal does not count them.

• Mercury in wild mushrooms⁴

  Boletus mushrooms can hold mercury, and eating the caps may give you more than eating the stems.

• Radiation from wild mushrooms⁵

  Boletus mushrooms hold small amounts of natural radiation, and eating them adds little to what people already get.

• Radioactivity in mushrooms⁷

  Boletus edulis picked in Poland held more radioactive cesium when young, and braising raised the levels.

• Mould toxins in dried mushrooms⁹

  Dried boletus samples were checked for mould toxins, and levels stayed too low to measure.

• Arsenic cell damage from mushrooms¹⁰

  In lab studies, arsenic in wild boletus gut extracts damaged cells, and cooking lowered this.

Allergies and intolerances

These are about people with an allergy, an intolerance or coeliac disease. The signal is about the ingredient itself, and these are about the person eating it, so the signal does not count them.

• Mushroom food allergy³

  Boletus edulis can cause a food allergy, because one protein in it survives being eaten.

Single cases of misuse or overdose

One person or one incident, such as an accidental overdose or a mistake in a kitchen or factory. They are real, but a single case does not show what happens at normal amounts, so the signal does not count them.

• Food poisoning from mushrooms²

  In a wedding outbreak, 69% of people who ate Boletus mushrooms got gastroenteritis, versus 18% who did not.

How it’s made and used

• Radiation in wild mushrooms⁸

  Boletus mushrooms from Yunnan and Sichuan held very low levels of radioactive cesium, and natural potassium was the bigger source.

The signal at the top counts the findings in people and in animal and lab studies. A concern in studies of people outranks animal and lab studies, and “No concerns” needs at least one finding in people. When most findings in people point one way, the page leans that way (“Mostly”), and every finding is still shown. Findings whose study type is not stated are shown but not counted. This page is a reference, not medical advice. It describes what regulators and published research say. Talk to a doctor or dietitian about your own diet.