Very popular for holiday decorations, some plants can however be toxic and therefore represent a health hazard.
- Stars of table decorations and offered as gifts, some plants are nevertheless toxic and can cause gastrointestinal problems and heart problems if ingested.
- This is the case of holly, mistletoe or the Christmas rose.
- American researchers have just published a guide to recognize them.
Bright red, deep green or pristine white. They are the stars of Christmas Eve. Prized for their smell or their colors, these plants are regularly used as table decorations or given as gifts.
However, they are not without risk to health, as American researchers point out. In a guide published in the British Medical Journalthey warn of the toxicity of certain festive plants, for humans and their pets.
Watch out for red holly berries
Often used as an ornament for the end-of-year celebrations, the evergreen English holly (Ilex aquifolium) should be handled with care and should not be left within reach of children. Indeed its berries, “as red as blood” contain saponins, which can cause gastrointestinal upset if consumed in large amounts. On rare occasions, they can lead to drowsiness, hyperthermia and ataxia (impaired motor coordination). However, the researchers want to be reassuring, recalling that “saponins are not readily absorbed from the gastrointestinal tract” and “most ingestions do not cause toxicity”.
Beware also of the European mistletoe (Viscum album). All parts of this plant with iridescent berries are poisonous. They contain viscotoxins (plant lectins, including ricin), which inhibit cellular protein synthesis by binding to the ribosomal subunit. Eating the leaves or berries of mistletoe causes gastrointestinal upset.
The bittersweet and the yew, pretty plants with toxic properties
Besides holly and mistletoe, decorative Advent wreaths are often made using sweetheart (Solanum dulcamara) or yew. The pretty scarlet berries of bittersweet contain solanine-type glycoalkaloids. Their ingestion can cause abdominal pain, vomiting and headache.
As for the yew (Taxus baccata), it has long been identified as a poison. The whole plant contains taxines and cardiac glycosides. Its ingestion causes cardiac dysrhythmias, which can lead to persistent hypotension and bradycardia.
The poinsettia, unfairly considered dangerous
Among the favorite winter-flowering plants, fortunately, there are species that are harmless to health. This is the case with the cyclamen, the Christmas cactus (Schlumbergera truncata) and poinsettias (Euphorbia pulcherrima). This plant has mistakenly acquired the reputation of being poisonous if ingested. Be careful, however, to keep it away from the eyes to avoid irritation related to the sap.
The ornamental Christmas rose (Helleborus niger), is however to be kept away from the table.
This herb contains cardiac glycosides, which can produce bradycardia, as well as gastrointestinal upset and kidney damage. Also beware of the Jerusalem cherry or Christmas cherry (Solanum pseudocapsicum), another perennial houseplant whose berries can produce gastrointestinal upset if ingested.
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