Muscimol and ibotenic acid are the two main active compounds of Amanita muscaria. A 2026 review describes ibotenic acid as acting on glutamate receptors and muscimol as a potent agonist at GABA receptors (Günther et al., 2026). That puts them in a different pharmacological world from psilocybin, which acts through serotonin receptors.
Toxicologists treat them as poisons. A 2025 review groups the fly agaric with mushrooms that cause central nervous system toxicity, not with the psilocybin group (Stoeva-Grigorova et al., 2025). The difference matters for edibles: in 2024 the US FDA found muscimol in 9 of 22 tested chocolate bars from one recalled line of “mushroom” products, and said muscimol could not explain all the symptoms reported (FDA).
In Canada, a search of the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act current to 30 September 2026 finds neither compound in any schedule (CDSA). Not being scheduled is not the same as being approved or safe. This is not legal or medical advice.
Sources
- Günther et al., 2026, Molecules: Amanita muscaria review
- Stoeva-Grigorova et al., 2025: mushroom toxicology review (PMC)
- US FDA: Diamond Shruumz illness investigation, 2024
- Controlled Drugs and Substances Act (Justice Laws)
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