Have you ever heard of ricin? It is one of the most dangerous toxins out there. A favorite of terrorists and the KGB. How common is it and should you be worried?

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Today’s episode is:

Ricin: These beans taste terrible

I’m not sure if you’ve ever heard of ricin, but in my line

of work, ricin seems to pop up quite often. 

It is incredibly toxic, yet relatively easy to come by.  This combination makes it a favorite of

terrorists, criminals, and even spy organizations.  In addition to this, there is an occasional

accidental poisoning. 

Where ricin comes from

Ricin is a poison extracted from the castor bean.  Many of you may have seen the castor

plant.  It is a very ornamental plant

with large green and red leaves.  The

first time I recognized one, it was in a planter in front of a local

hospital.  I bet they didn’t know that

their entrance was being guarded by one of the world’s most toxic plants.  While the entire plant can be toxic, the beans

are the main source of the toxin.  Take a

look at my website for a picture of the plant and the beans.

You’ve probably heard of castor oil.  It is also extracted from castor beans, but the

process removes the poison.  That's a

good thing because my Grandma was a big believer in castor oil for many

different ailments.  Not sure if it ever

helped, but the taste left something to be desired.

Obviously, I'm not going to go into how the poison is

obtained from the bean, but it is fairly easy. 

Thankfully, it is a little more difficult than most of the illicit

internet sites make it seem.  If you want

a fairly pure ricin, that requires some advanced techniques.

Accidental ricin poisonings

Most of the accidental poisonings are a result of pets,

children, and even occasionally adults eating the beans.  As long as the beans aren’t chewed, most

people recover, but a couple of thoroughly chewed castor beans is enough to

kill an adult.  I’m not sure of the

episode, but one of the contestants on Discovery’s Naked and Afraid realty

show, is shown eating some beans from an unknown plant and then getting

violently ill.  When they showed the

plant, I was surprised to see that it was a castor plant.  Apparently his preparation methods attenuated

the toxin to some extent, but the man is lucky to have survived.

In a case study from Morocco, 7 and 10-year-old girls became

very ill in separate incidents after eating castor beans.  Both girls arrived at the ER unconscious and

suffering from seizures. Both girls reported abdominal pain and vomiting about

2 hours after eating the beans.  When

stomach contents were emptied, castor bean remnants were present.  With intubation and supportive care, both

girls were able to completely recover. https://www.srlf.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/1209-Reanimation-Vol21-N5-p555_p556.pdf

Intentional ricin poisonings

Intentional poisonings are more common than you might

think.  Looking at Wikipedia, there are