Humans have used mussels as food for thousands of years and continue to do so. About 17 species are edible.
Mussel poisoning due to toxic planktonic organisms can be a danger along some coastlines. Mussels should be avoided along the west coast of the United States during the warmer months. This poisoning is usually due to a bloom of dinoflagellates (red tides), which contain toxins. The dinoflagellates and their toxin are harmless to mussels, but if the mussels are consumed by humans, the concentrated toxins cause serious illness, such as paralytic shellfish poisoning, though the red tide is not toxic to humans in direct contact with the ocean.
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