All That's Interesting

Though manchineels look and taste like apples, they're so toxic that eating them can cause internal bleeding, shock, and suffocation. In 2000, radiologist Nicola Strickland described her harrowing personal experience of eating this piece of produce: "I rashly took a bite from this fruit and found it pleasantly sweet. Moments later we noticed a strange peppery feeling in our mouths, which gradually progressed to a burning, tearing sensation and tightness of the throat. The symptoms worsened over a couple of hours until we could barely swallow solid food because of the excruciating pain and the feeling of a huge obstructing pharyngeal lump."⁠
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While Strickland was fortunate enough to survive the experience of eating this "beach apple," others haven't been so lucky. And incredibly enough, the fruit isn't the only poisonous part of this plant.⁠
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Go inside the shocking history of the manchineel tree by clicking the link in our profile.⁠