Toxicological risks and nutritional value of wild edible mushroom species -a half-century monitoring study.

The content of major- and trace elements in wild-growing mushrooms has been subject to numerous studies, but the data on long-term trends in this regard are scarce. The aim of research was to determine the content of 34 elements in four edible mushroom species Boletus edulis, Imleria badia, Leccinum scabrum and Macrolepiota procera, and associated soil collected from Polish forests between 1974 and 2019. As initially hypothesized, the element concentration in the studied soil revealed an increasing trend and was positively correlated with their levels found in fruit bodies. Bioconcentrafion Factor values exceeding 1 were documented for all mushroom species for K, P, Ag, Cd, Cu, Hg, and Zn. When compared to the Adequate Intakes, all the mushroom species were found to be a good dietary source of K, P, and Zn (range of 6260-8690, 6260-8690 and 97-135 mg kg-1 dry weight (dw), respectively), and B. edulis and I. badia a moderate source of Fe (mean 71.5 and 76.5 mg kg-1 dw, respectively), B. edulis of Mn and Mo (mean 20.0 and 0.42 mg kg-1 dw, respectively), while L. scabrum and M. procera a source of Cu. Consumption of the studied mushrooms would not lead to significant exposure to Al, As, Cr, or Ni. Considering that wild mushrooms will continue to be collected in Poland, one should bear in mind that they are a limited source of minerals in the human diet while their frequent, regular consumption, associated with exposure to selected toxic elements, should not be recommended.