Deathcap mushroom

Natural products, including herbal products derived from naturcd products, are exempt from regulation as food additives by the FDA because the chemiccds they contain occur naturally and have not been added by people. However, the majority of toxic chemicals we eat (including many that can cause cancer) occur naturally in our food. In fact, many toxic natural products are much more potent than any of the food additives that have ever been used. Yet media coverage of chemicals in food usually focuses on chemicals that have been added to food. The natural chemicals present in foods often only make the news when an accidental poisoning has occurred, such as when someone dies from eating deathcap mushrooms (Amanita phalloides. ... 

Other examples regarding food toxicology involve fungi and plants. Wild mushrooms are often harvested and eaten with dinner in both the United States and Europe. One species of wild mushroom is the deathcap mushroom. This mushroom... 

The next point is that natnral risks seem more acceptable than artificial risks. Natural risks include lightning, tornadoes, earthqnakes, cancer from cosmic radiation, and ingestion of natural products that are toxic (e.g., puffer fish, deathcap mushrooms). Artificial risks are those associated with manufactured chemicals or situations, such as pesticides in soil or air pollntion from indnstrial emissions. Even if the risks are identical, the artificial one will be considered less acceptable than the natural one. 

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