Welcome to your magic mushroom dosage guide! This is the resource you should definitely consult before consuming psilocybin-containing magic mushrooms. Read this guide and use our magic mushroom calculator to ensure that you’re taking the right amount to achieve the maximum benefits at minimum risk. We’ll also provide other helpful tips for your mushroom trip.
What are magic mushrooms?
Let’s quickly get some definitions out of the way. There are multiple different kinds of hallucinogenic or psychotropic mushrooms – but they aren’t all “magic” mushrooms.
Here’s what’s not a magic mushroom: the amanita muscaria, as well as “medicinal” mushrooms such as Chaga, Reishi, and Lion’s Mane. Amanita muscaria has powerful hallucinogenic effects, but it doesn’t contain any psychedelic molecules. Chaga, Reishi, and Lion’s Mane are all purported to have therapeutic and health benefits, but they are not psychoactive.
Magic mushrooms is the name reserved for mushrooms containing the psychedelic molecules psilocybin and psilocin. Sometimes we call these psychedelic mushrooms, or psilocybin mushrooms. There are over 150 species of mushrooms that contain psilocybin! The most famous and widespread of these is the psilocybe cubensis species, because it is relatively easy to grow and contains significant quantities of psilocybin.
Psilocybin is a special molecule because it interacts with the serotonin receptors in your brain. You may have heard of serotonin – an important neuroreceptor. We often associate it with the feeling of happiness and well-being, though like all neurological signals it can be far more nuanced than that.
The serotonergic system in your brain is exploited in the development of certain pharmaceutical tools like antidepressants, because it helps to regulate mood. That is why psilocybin species are being explored for psychotherapy, in cases such as depression or post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
How much psilocybin is in magic mushrooms?
As the primary active molecule in magic mushrooms, psilocybin is important because it will help you to determine dosage. To get your dosage right, you’ll need to know roughly how potent your mushrooms are – that is, how much psilocybin is contained per gram of dried mushroom. This can vary depending on the species and the growing conditions.
As long as you get the ballpark range correct, you should be fairly safe. The dangers associated with magic mushrooms and psilocybin are primarily psychological in nature, rather than physiological.
That said, psychological dangers are also very real – so make sure you do your math right. You wouldn’t want to be off by an order of magnitude.
Psilocybe cubensis is usually assumed to have a 1% psilocybin per gram of dried mushroom. Since this species was popularized in part thanks to its high concentration of psilocybin, many other psilocybin-containing shrooms will actually have a lower conversion rate.
However, that’s not necessarily the case. Research reports have shown that the conversion for different species of magic shrooms can drop as low as 0.5%, but can also go as high as 2%. Pay attention to what species you are consuming, and check out some research articles to see if the concentration of psilocybin has been quantified. This will give a ballpark conversion – because remember, growing conditions can also change psilocybin concentration.
Mushroom dosage calculator
Current research studies usually apply a fixed “standard dosage” of 25 mg psilocybin, or a “high dose” of 35 mg psilocybin. A “supra-therapeutic” dose is in the range of 50-60 mg psilocybin. These numbers are based on previous studies specific to magic mushroom dosage.
So, what does that mean from mushroom dosage? Or in other words, how many grams of magic mushrooms do you need to obtain a standard, high, or supra-therapeutic dosage? Here’s your highly complicated (not really) mathematical formula to calculate that:
Desired psilocybin dosage (mg) / 10 = dosage of dried mushrooms (g)
In other words, let’s say you’re looking for a dosage that’s a little lower than standard – perhaps 15 mg. All you need to do is divide 15 by 10, and you’ll get the required dosage of dried mushrooms, which is 1.5 g. You can use a kitchen scale to weigh the proper amount.
Magic mushroom dosage chart
If you’re not into dividing by 10, here’s a chart to make things easy for you.
|
Standard dose |
High dose |
Supra-therapeutic dose |
|
|
Psilocybin |
25 mg |
35 mg |
50–60 mg |
|
Dried Psilocybe cubensis mushroom equivalent |
2.5 gram |
3.5 gram |
5–6 gram |
Does dosage depend on body weight?
Probably not. Early studies investigating dosage used to administer dosages based on body weight, using a conversion of 0.2–0.4 mg/kg of psilocybin per session. However, researchers found that weight didn’t make a difference in terms of subjective experience. Studies have since switched to fixed shroom dosage.
However, there are other things besides body size which may make a difference. Some people are simply more sensitive to psilocybin, regardless of size. This isn’t predictable, nor is it fully understood. It may have to do with genetic variations in the serotonin receptors themselves, which affect how strongly psilocybin is bound.
What about microdosing?
Microdosing is a popular therapeutic practice where small doses are consumed habitually (for example, daily) over an extended period of time. These doses are meant to be well below the standard dose. In fact, they are often well below the minimum noticeable dose.
There is little research to support the therapeutic efficacy of microdosing. Studies have found that microdosing had no effect on well-being, creativity, or cognition. If microdosing does have benefits, they are likely due more to the expectation of the user than any biochemical mechanism. However, expectations and rituals are themselves a powerful tool, so the potential benefits of microdosing should not be overlooked!
What happens if you take too many magic mushrooms?
Magic mushrooms have what’s considered to be an “unattainable lethal dose.” That means it would be really hard to take a deadly dose of magic mushrooms. It would be much easier to overdose on isolated, extracted psilocybin – but most people are not consuming psilocybin in this form.
Another promising safety indicator is that magic mushrooms have a very large therapeutic index. This basically means that the dose required to receive therapy from magic mushrooms is very far from the dose required to create adverse effects.
It should be noted that magic mushrooms can raise heart rate and blood pressure, so people with pre-existing cardiovascular conditions should exercise caution.
Another potential contraindication is for people who are already taking antidepressants or antipsychotics. These drug classes often interact with the same system (the serotonergic system), and therefore can create unforeseen safety problems.
The greatest danger with magic mushrooms is a psychological one. A history of schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, or psychosis, are all possible contraindications for magic mushrooms.
Even for people with a history of mood disorders, set and setting should be carefully controlled to minimize the risk of a negative trip. This is by far the most important safety measure when it comes to minimizing psychological risks with magic mushrooms.
Where to buy magic mushrooms
Although magic mushrooms are showing increasing promise for drug therapy, psilocybin is still technically a Schedule I drug. It is federally illegal to sell or possess. It is possible to purchase mushroom spores and grow kits in order to grow your own mushrooms. These are only technically legal up until the point that they produce psilocybin, in the mycelium phase.
Many commercially-available mushroom products contain patented formulas meant to mimic the psychedelic effects of psilocybin-containing mushrooms.
If you have any questions about any of our products, please don’t hesitate to contact us for a free consultation.
