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-   -   Oleander/toxicity revisited (https://www.gardenbanter.co.uk/gardening/20394-re-oleander-toxicity-revisited.html)

Lou Minatti 04-05-2003 07:56 AM

Oleander/toxicity revisited
 
(Thalocean2) wrote in message ...
Here's a good guide to some toxic plants and their degrees of toxicity.

Oleander is listed as "Extreemly" toxic.
http://www.vet.purdue.edu/depts/addl/toxic/bytox1.htm

Some wive's tales are true and save lives.


I have a yard filled with Oleanders. Blooming spectacularly right now,
I might add. Oleander's are nature's most wonderful large shrubs, IMO.
I know of no other plant the produces such amazing displays with so
little work.

I also have two young children, who have never shown even the
slightest interest in eating my Oleanders or cooking a hot dog over an
open fire using a branch from one of the Oleanders.

So before I kill my Oleanders (and Azaleas, WHICH ALSO CONTAIN DEADLY
POISON AND CAN KILL YOU IF YOU EAT ENOUGH OF THEM!!!!) to protect
them, can someone point out the number of people who have actually
been killed by ingesting the required 40+ leaves from an Oleander,
which tastes extremely bitter and nasty? Has ANYONE been killed say,
within the past 100 years? Genuine statistics, please. Thanks.

Tsu Dho Nimh 04-05-2003 02:20 PM

Oleander/toxicity revisited
 
(Lou Minatti) wrote:

So before I kill my Oleanders (and Azaleas, WHICH ALSO CONTAIN DEADLY
POISON AND CAN KILL YOU IF YOU EAT ENOUGH OF THEM!!!!) to protect
them, can someone point out the number of people who have actually
been killed by ingesting the required 40+ leaves from an Oleander,


And the foxgloves!

Sri Lanka - oleander poisoning accounted for 798 admissions to
hospital and 33 (4.1%) deaths over a 21 month period. However,
it was a suicide ward. Examples include a 16 year old girl who
died after eating oleander seeds because her mother said she
could not watch television.

which tastes extremely bitter and nasty? Has ANYONE been killed say,
within the past 100 years? Genuine statistics, please. Thanks.


Lots of livestock ... horses, cows, llamas are all suceptible.

from e-medicine.com:
Mortality is rare, but case reports documenting fatalities from
oleander, foxglove, squill, and other related plants do exist. In
1998, the AAPCC reported 1 death and 2,553 exposures to cardiac
glycoside-containing plants. Death occurred after an intentional
parenteral injection of oleander extract. (extract, not leaves)

The chances would be higher if the leaves were mistakenly used
in a tea or othe4r herbal preparation


Tsu

--
To doubt everything or to believe everything
are two equally convenient solutions; both
dispense with the necessity of reflection.
- Jules Henri Poincaré

Tsu Dho Nimh 04-05-2003 02:44 PM

Oleander/toxicity revisited
 
(Lou Minatti) wrote:

which tastes extremely bitter and nasty? Has ANYONE been killed say,
within the past 100 years? Genuine statistics, please. Thanks.


It gets better:

http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/00039633.htm
"During February 1993-May 1995, the New York City Poison Control
Center (NYCPCC) was informed about onset of illness in five
previously healthy men after they ingested a substance marketed
as a topical aphrodisiac; four of the men died.

.... Cardiac steriods are found in other nontraditional therapies
such as Chan Su and teas made from oleander (Nerium oleander)

.... samples of Chan Su were obtained for comparative analysis
from an importing company in New York City. Based on physical
examination and analysis by TLC, the Chan Su samples and the
topical aphrodisiac samples were identical."


So aside from suicide and stupidity, nothing verifiable.


Tsu

--
To doubt everything or to believe everything
are two equally convenient solutions; both
dispense with the necessity of reflection.
- Jules Henri Poincaré

Lou Minatti 06-05-2003 03:20 AM

Oleander/toxicity revisited
 
Tsu Dho Nimh wrote in message . ..
(Lou Minatti) wrote:

which tastes extremely bitter and nasty? Has ANYONE been killed say,
within the past 100 years? Genuine statistics, please. Thanks.


snip

So aside from suicide and stupidity, nothing verifiable.


Thanks, Tsu. That's what I thought!

Now since we're discussing absurd risks, I wonder how many people die
from bee stings each year? More than people who die from ingesting
Oleader? If so, perhaps we should get rid of flowers near our gardens.
We have to eliminate that risk. g


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