After picking and eating from a tobacco plant: two hospitalized in intensive care

Two foreign workers from Thailand were hospitalized in intensive care at Rambam after picking a tobacco plant, making soup from it, and eating it. One is sedated and ventilated in serious condition, the other improved and was transferred to an internal ward. Dr. Yael Lurie warns against picking and cooking unidentified wild plants.

Two foreign workers from Thailand were hospitalized in intensive care at Rambam Hospital in Haifa after picking a tobacco plant, making soup from it, and eating it. The incident likely occurred in their residence area in one of the Carmel coast settlements. Hours after eating, both began suffering symptoms indicative of poisoning. One of them, who developed respiratory distress, is sedated and ventilated in serious condition. The other improved and was transferred to an internal ward for further observation. Dr. Yael Lurie, director of the National Poison Information Center at Rambam, explained that the toxic substance in the plant is mainly Anabasine, whose mechanism of action is similar to nicotine. Ingestion of plant parts can cause gastrointestinal irritation, sweating, dizziness, tremors, changes in blood pressure and heart rate, and damage to the central nervous system, even leading to convulsions and loss of consciousness. She noted that the severity of poisoning depends on the amount ingested, and there is no specific antidote. Although this is a rare case, in the past other people have sought medical treatment after consuming the plant. Dr. Lurie warned the public not to pick or prepare tea or stew from plants not identified by experts, and in any case of poisoning to bring the suspected cause to the emergency room.