Woman with insomnia almost kills herself after accidentally using poison to brew herbal tea
She went to buy comfrey leaves at a market but actually picked up a foxglove, which contains poison that slows the heart
A WOMAN almost killed herself by mistakenly using poison to brew a herbal tea to try to help her sleep.
The insomniac, 63, went to buy comfrey leaves at a market stall on the advice of a friend.
But she actually picked up similar-looking foxglove, which contains digitalis, a poison that slows the heart.
She was taken to A&E 18 hours later after vomiting and developing palpitations.
Medics at King’s College Hospital in South London found she had an irregular heartbeat but were puzzled what caused it — until she told them about the tea.
The unnamed patient recovered after five days of treatment.
Speaking of the April case, Dr Mathew Kurian Vithayathil said: "When shown both images, the patient was not confident which leaves she had picked from the market stall.
"The patient was unable to find the original leaves she had purchased in the market, but was advised to contact the seller to inform them of the mistake.
"Homemade herbal remedies on the surface may seem harmless.
"However, this case illustrates how limited knowledge of plants can be potentially fatal.
"Wild comfrey grows in the UK and throughout Europe.
"It is frequently used in herbal remedies brewed into a tea, and has throughout history been thought to treat many ailments.
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"Unfortunately, during Spring in particular, it is very difficult to distinguish between the thick leaves of comfrey and foxglove.
"This case illustrates how this subtly can lead to mistaken identity, and near-fatal consequences.
"Although the exact species and quantity of the Digitalis plant accidental ingested by our patient are not known, cases of Digitalis ingestion have been associated with significant cardiac arrhythmias and even death.
"The diagnosis was confirmed with raised serum digoxin levels."
He has contacted the NPIS to recommend including the risk of accidental ingestion of Digitalis under the entry for comfrey.
There are frequent cases of mistaken identity when inexperienced botanists pick their own flora
Dr Vithayathil
He concluded: "It is not surprising that there are frequent cases of mistaken identity when inexperienced botanists pick their own wild flora herbal remedies.
"However, it is rare for these mistakes to be life threatening.
"Here, we present a case of life threatening accidental toxic ingestion in an urban environment.
"It highlights to all clinicians that they must be vigilant against the accidental ingestion of the foxglove plant, containing organic cardiac glycosides, when patients experiment with natural herbal remedies.
"It is a reminder that any ingestion of novel or uncommon plants should receive comprehensive investigations, such as blood tests and ECG."