aconite likely poisoned a dozen people at toronto-area restaurant

a total of 12 diners sought medical attention after eating at delight restaurant & bbq in markham, ont. on the weekend of aug. 26 and 27. four people required intensive care, but all were projected to recover. cbc news reported that officials believe all 12 people had eaten the same chicken dish that contained a toxic plant.

“we do suspect that it was something called aconite, which is a toxin that can be found in various herbs or roots, or in particular one flower,” york region’s medical officer of health dr. barry pakes told cp24 .

what is aconite?

“the lethal dose for humans can be as little as two milligrams, or the size of a sesame seed,” dr. prateek lala, associate director of applied clinical pharmacology at the university of toronto, told ctv news .

monkshood, or aconitum napellus, is native to central and western europe. for centuries, it was used in battle as a poison added to the tips of spears and arrows, according to the national capital poison center . it was also used for execution by ancient romans. it’s still used in some traditional chinese and  ayurvedic medicines, but only after being processed to remove its toxic properties.

symptoms of aconite poisoning include numbness, burning

the symptoms of aconite poisoning generally occur fairly quickly: within the first 30 to 60 minutes. the initial signs are usually gastrointestinal, according to the american association for clinical chemistry : there’s a burning feeling in the stomach, followed by tingling and numbness in the mouth. that’s often followed by nausea, diarrhea, vomiting and general stomach pain.

“it seems like this is a fairly small batch kind of situation, or a distributor or a product that is fairly niche,” pakes told cbc news . “the main focus of our work is to figure out where it might have gone, and to make sure that we get all of that product off the shelf.”

days later, york public health issued a release warning consumers to immediately throw out two powdered products produced by the brand mr. right: their keampferia galanga powder (product code: at119 or at154) , and the radix aconiti kusnezoffii powder (product code at154). these products have also been recalled by the distributor.

aconite poisoning is rare in canada

in 2010, a british woman was found guilty of murder after poisoning her ex-boyfriend’s food with wolfsbane, but most cases of aconite poisoning have been accidental.

there have only been a few cases of aconite poisoning in canada over the last few decades, cbc news points out. in 2004, the 25-year-old canadian actor andre noble died in his native newfoundland after likely ingesting monkshood sap. and two people in b.c. were hospitalized earlier this year after consuming powdered ginger that was also accidentally poisoned with aconite.

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aconite likely poisoned a dozen people at toronto-area restaurant

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