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The foods we eat can go a long way in boosting our moods. Here are our favorite snacks for happiness, according to science. Achieving happiness is top of mind for many people, and we'll try just about anything to get it. Whether it's therapy, exercise or meditation, we all want to bring more peace and joy into our lives. When we think about what makes us happy, our diet isn't usually at the top of the list (unless your favorite fast-food joint brings joy to mind). The foods we eat actually play a major role in how we feel. Studies...

Psychedelic mushrooms sprung up some 67 million years ago, more than 65 million years before humans ever existed, according to the most extensive genomic study examining these types of fungi. Scientists, who published their work this week in the Proceeding of the National Academy of Sciences, found that of the more than 50 species in the Psilocybe genus, 35 had a novel gene arrangement that coded for psilocybin, the hallucinogen that gives Psilocybe mushrooms their psychedelic quality. Previous studies had identified a single, different genetic pathway to the production of psilocybin, but the new work opens up the possibility of...

It's the kind of story a mystery novelist might conjure. But for months, a real murder case has been playing out in a small Australian town where three people died after eating a family meal that was suspected to contain poisonous death cap mushrooms. The prime suspect in Leongatha, a country town some 84 miles southeast of Melbourne in Victoria, has long been seen as Erin Patterson, who hosted the lunch in late July whose four guests quickly fell gravely ill. The menu included a beef Wellington dish that Patterson said included mushrooms. Police arrested Patterson on Thursday; she...

The off-duty pilot accused of trying to bring down an Alaska Airlines flight told investigators he took psychedelic mushrooms 48 hours prior to the incident, had been depressed, and believed he was experiencing a mental breakdown, authorities said. The off-duty pilot — Joseph Emerson, 44, of California — has since been charged with more than 80 counts of attempted murder, and the FBI is investigating whether he was under the influence when he tried to shut down the plane's engines while sitting in the cockpit of Sunday's flight from Everett, Washington, to San Francisco, officials told NBC News.

An off-duty pilot allegedly tried to shut off the engines on an Alaska Airlines plane while it was on its way to San Francisco, police said. The plane on Flight 2059 was travelling from Everett, Washington, but had to be diverted to Portland, Oregon, after the incident. Horizon Air, a subsidiary of Alaska Airlines, said the presence of a "credible threat" in the jump seat of the cockpit’s flight deck. "The jump seat occupant unsuccessfully attempted to disrupt the operation of the engines," read a statement from the airline. "The Horizon Captain and First Officer quickly responded, engine power was...

The out-of-control airline pilot who tried to down an Alaskan Airlines flight midair told cops he had taken magic mushrooms before the flight, it emerged Tuesday. Joseph Emerson, 44, an off-duty commercial airline pilot, went off the rails while sitting in the cockpit jump seat of a flight between Everett, Washington, and San Francisco on Sunday — trying to cut the fuel to the engines before he had to be held down by crew members. Even while restrained, Emerson tried to open the emergency doors on the Alaskan flight, which was being operated by Horizon Air, as the pilots frantically...

In a world where boundaries and definitions are stretched to unrecognizable limits, a congregation of ex-Mormons has outdone itself in an unprecedented display of spiritual anarchy. Stepping far away from previously blasphemous Mormon roots, they’ve founded a “church” where their sacrament is not the bread and wine symbolizing Christ’s sacrifice, but psychedelic mushrooms. Yes, you read that correctly. They call themselves the “Divine Assembly,” trading in pews and hymnals for bean bags and trip guides. These spiritual “adventurers” claim they are communing directly with the divine while they’re tripping, but the only thing they are communing with is the surreal...

In Ohio we have had a very wet summer, puffballs come out every year but this year they are 4 times the size.

Aug. 9 (UPI) -- Australian police are seeking answers in connection to the poisoning of three people who died after eating wild mushrooms at a dinner served in Leongatha, Australia. The three deceased victims, who fell ill after eating on July 29, have been identified as Gail Patterson, her husband, Don Patterson, and her sister Heather Wilkinson. Heather Wilkinson's husband, the Rev. Ian Wilkinson, also was poisoned and is awaiting a liver transplant. The victims became ill after eating dinner at the home of Erin Patterson, Gail and Don Patterson's former daughter-in-law. Erin Patterson and her two children did not...

Morel mushrooms Public health officials have signed off on an outbreak investigation in Montana saying that morel mushrooms were most likely what made dozens of people sick and killed two. In addition to the two deaths, the outbreak traced to Dave’s Sushi in Bozeman, MT, sickened more than 50 people and sent three to hospitals. People became ill between March 28 and April 17 this year, according to the Gallatin City-County Health Department. The local department worked with the Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, as well as the U.S. Centers...

Magic mushrooms may have been to blame for Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen’s mortifying bow before a Chinese official last week. Yellen, 76, gobbled four portions of jian shou qing, a type of wild mushroom, when she dropped in at a casual Beijing restaurant soon after she arrived there on July 6, Chinese state media reported in an effusive story that took care to praise the secretary’s chopstick skills. But the funky fungi are known in their native province of Yunnan for their unpredictable psychedelic effects, CNN reported.

Sen. John Fetterman offered full-throated support for psychedelics as a form of mental health therapy, bringing the emerging drug reform movement to Capitol Hill. Fetterman, the junior senator from Pennsylvania, made the comments on Wednesday during Senate Agriculture subcommittee hearing, saying he’s “been an advocate of psychedelics in terms of magic mushrooms for PTSD and for veterans especially.” “I always thought it could be - and maybe I’m wrong - an amazing economic kind of boom for the mushroom [sector],” said Fetterman, as quoted by the website. “I think it could be a revolution in mental health.” Fetterman, a Democrat...

Cases of Candida auris doubled in 2021, according to a new CDC report. A recent report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention revealed the fungus Candida auris is spreading rapidly through U.S. health care facilities. Also known as C. auris, reports of cases linked to the drug-resistant fungus have doubled in 2021. In addition, the fungus is behind an outbreak in Mississippi that began in November, infecting at least 12 people and potentially responsible for about four deaths, according to figures provided by the state Department of Health to ABC News. Although C. auris does not present a...

In a recent Phytotherapy Research study, scientists review existing literature on edible mushrooms and their bioactive constituents and their impact on hypertension. Study: Edible mushrooms as potential functional foods in amelioration of hypertension. Image Credit: New Africa / Shutterstock.com Study: Edible mushrooms as potential functional foods in amelioration of hypertension. Image Credit: New Africa / Shutterstock.com The health benefits of mushrooms Edible mushrooms are enriched with nutritional bioactive compounds, dietary fiber, amino acids, sterols, proteins, vitamins, and minerals that can influence cardiovascular functions. These types of mushrooms are considered a common functional food that is present in different types of...

A group of hikers in England got so ill from taking mushrooms that a search and rescue team had to retrieve them. And they're not the first psychedelic enthusiasts to have a trip go wrong on the trail.Every hiker has had a bad trip before. But a group of hikers in England’s Lake District gave the term new meaning last week, when they got so ill from taking magic mushrooms that they needed rescue. On April 8, the Keswick Mountain Rescue Team received a number of calls from walkers who had encountered “a group of young adult males who had...

Passers-by reported the group of “young adult males” acting strangely around noon at Stonycroft Beck, Newlands area of the Lake District National Park, roughly 75 miles north of Liverpool. Two of the men — including the party’s driver — became ill after ingesting the mind-bending psychedelic fungi, the Keswick Mountain Rescue Team said. The rescuers staged a delicate operation to convince the men to let them guide them to safety at the bottom of the mountain before it got dark.

Researchers have discovered the active compound from an edible mushroom that boosts nerve growth and enhances memory. Professor Frederic Meunier said the team had identified new active compounds from the mushroom, Hericium erinaceus. "Extracts from these so-called 'lion's mane' mushrooms have been used in traditional medicine in Asian countries for centuries, but we wanted to scientifically determine their potential effect on brain cells," Professor Meunier said. "Pre-clinical testing found the lion's mane mushroom had a significant impact on the growth of brain cells and improving memory. "Laboratory tests measured the neurotrophic effects of compounds isolated from Hericium erinaceus on cultured...

What could go wrong? An illegal magic mushroom shop in Portland attracted hoards of customers Shroom House sells psilocybin mushrooms despite the fact its illegal in Oregon The upmarket shop says it's 'not a dispensary' but a 'health and wellness shop' Its opening comes amid rising crime and an exodus of businesses from the city Applications for psilocybin dispensaries will start being accepted in January Hundreds of Portland residents have flocked to a whimsical new magical mushroom store that has opened in the city - despite being totally illegal. The upmarket mushroom shop, called Shroom House, appeared in the city...

General Motors’ venture capital arm has invested in a California startup that’s making imitation leather from mushrooms. The material is made by MycoWorks using the root-like structures of mushrooms, called mycelia. It could provide an alternative to both traditional leather made from animal skins, usually cattle, and artificial leather made from plastics. The auto industry is the largest user of leather other than for shoes, according to 2015 data from International Council of Tanners. MycoWorks grows these threadlike mycelia into flexible, leather-like sheets. The resulting material feels like leather, has similar durability and can be colored using processes that do...

Puffball season is nearing its end, but some Quebecers will be eating their mushroom for daysMélanie Greffard and her husband usually head out to a nearby forest or the Eastern Townships to forage for mushrooms. So the pair had quite the surprise when they stumbled upon a Calvatia gigantea — a giant puffball the size of two basketballs in their backyard near downtown Quebec City last week. It weighed in at nearly six kilograms. "At first, it's almost kind of scary, like, 'What is this thing?'" Greffard said, laughing. "We were really impressed with how big it was." Giant...