Deathly Datura
A lethal beauty with abilities you didn’t know
Plants are so neat. They come in many different shapes with an array of attributes. My personal favorites are the ones that aren’t as friendly as they appear. I find it fascinating that nature grows beautiful flowers like these. Painting sceneries with vibrant colors that conceal their lethal attributes. One kind of these dangerous plants are called Datura.
This form of Solanaceae, or better known as nightshade, are fairly poisonous. A consumption of 15 to 20 seeds alone is enough to kill a man, and 15 grams of the plant itself carries a fatal blow. Luckily, Datura is legal to grow in the US. You don’t even need a license or prescription to get ahold of it! While I don’t think your neighbor plans on poisoning you with their next batch of homemade cookies, I find it odd that anyone can grow it. But I’m not complaining, because I want to grow a few of these too. And besides, most symptoms are milder.
All parts of the Datura plant are poisonous, with its side effects consisting of “dry mouth, enlarged pupils, blurred vision, trouble breathing, hallucinations, panic, and death.” Not going to lie, this flower sounds pretty dope. I mean, think about it… This innocent-looking flower can really mess someone up. Definitely not a flower you want to mess with.
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What really spikes my interest though, is that it can be used for medical purposes. “Be it the leaves, fruits, flowers, stem or roots, Datura has been traditionally used in both folklore medications and alternative therapies. However, due to the strong hallucinogenic properties of the plant, Datura is often used to relieve asthmatic symptoms and reduce the pain during the surgery and bone setting procedures. Though a strong narcotic plant, Datura offers umpteen health benefits and is extensively used for alleviating pain, treating fever, enhancing heart functions, improving fertility, inducing sleep, easing childbirth and promoting hair and skin health.” Its amazing how many uses this flower can provide.
I’ve already mentioned that Datura can kill, so it should come as no surprise that there are some drawbacks. For one, some people attempt to self-medicate ocular diseases with Datura juice. This is a big NO. If they did any research they would know that this can cause endothelial cell loss — while it’s natural for you to loose CEC’s [corneal endothelial cell] as you age, if enough endothelial cells are damaged it can cause serious problems. — and corneal blindness. Seems counterproductive to me.
Another fun thing to note is the effect Datura has on the brain and the rest of the body. “Mentally, Datura can cause amnesia, confusion, psychosis, and hallucinations, in addition to altering mood and emotional expression.” Some people actually consume Datura to experience it’s hallucinogenic effects.
As a repercussion, Datura severely damages the body. “They act as competitive antagonists to peripheral and central muscarinic acetylcholine receptors leading to a general paralysis of the parasympathetic innervated organs.” Studies have also shown that Datura in some cases causes coma and seizures.
Overall I think Daturas are dope. It was interesting to research and I hope you enjoyed learning about this poisonous beauty. See ya later!
