Spread of poisonous ragwort

The poisonous ragwort causes liver damage and liver cancer

08/13/2012

For several years now, the highly poisonous ragwort has spread in Germany and increasingly in the state of Bavaria. Even small amounts of the herb are enough to cause severe damage to the liver. Because the toxic ragwort of the natural herb St. John's wort looks very similar, some people have been seriously and sometimes fatally poisoned.

Jacobskeuzkkaut distribution has increased
For years, the Jacobskeuzkkaut spreads increasingly in Bavaria. Even in the least amount of plants can lead to serious poisoning and liver damage. Above all, grazing animals such as cows and horses are endangered. Because the herb looks very similar to other plants, poisoning in humans occurs again and again.

Liver damage and liver cancer
Actually, the herb looks very handsome with its yellow flowers. However, the pyrrolizidine alkaloids it contains can cause liver damage and, in the worst case, even provoke liver cancer. Especially unborn children are at high risk if mothers look for themselves during pregnancy „Health tea“ drink and because of the risk of confusion instead of St. John's wort, flowers of Jacobskeuzkraut drink. The sole touch of the plant, however, is completely without hesitation.

In 2009, cross-herb was also found in a salad packaging with rocket in the supermarket. Fortunately, the find remained an isolated case. The leaves of ragwort and rocket look very similar and are very confusing for the non-expert. Experts therefore advise that only experts themselves should plant herbs in the garden or collect in forests and meadows. "Anyone who brews herbal teas or collects wild herbs for a salad should be particularly knowledgeable," advises Klaus Gehring, expert in weed control at the Bavarian State Research Center for Agriculture. Milk or meat from „contaminated animals“ are no danger for humans, experts say.

In 2011, a senior died because he had drunk a herbal tea that was contaminated with cross-herb, reports Klaus Gehring of the Bavarian State Research Center for Agriculture.

Red ragweed is found mainly on steep slopes and pastureland. But even in the home garden, the plants are increasingly found. „The plant is perennial: In the first year, only the green leaves are visible, only in the second year, it blooms yellow.“

Authorities report that the ragwort is more common in the region around Nuremberg, in some areas of the Bavarian Forest and in Swabia. In the Allgäu, however, there are other species of ragweed. „Here the superficial poisonous waterwort grows“, so the plant experts. Around 30 species of cross-species grow in Germany. Four of them are toxic and hazardous to health.

The spread of the plant is similar to a blowball. On open soils, the plants can settle very well and widen like dandelions. If the grass is closed, the herb can not or hardly spread.

Cows and horses are highly endangered
For grazing cows and horses the poisonous plant is very dangerous. If they become engorged, they accumulate in the organism and gradually decompose the vital liver organ. So far, there are no medical countermeasures to stop the symptoms of intoxication. Goats and spurs, on the other hand, are able to break down some of the toxins, as Zurich agricultural researchers discovered. In the forestals, the poison is readily absorbed. However, the animals tend to avoid the herb due to the smell and because it tastes bitter. Therefore, poisoning usually affects young animals. According to the agricultural researchers, organic farmers seem to be disproportionately affected because they do not use chemical substances to remove weeds.

Even dry plants are highly toxic
Even in the dried state, the poisonous plants represent a danger. The toxic content remains as effective in hay or silage as in fresh plants. „But there is a danger in particular because the cross-herb loses its bitter taste and the animals then consume the food nevertheless“, As the working group ragwort, an association of pet owners, veterinarians and farmers recently warned.

If found fast action required
Farmers and garden owners should remove the cross-herb plants together with the root and burn if possible. If the herb can not be burned, this can also be disposed of as regular household waste, as the working group of ragwort advises. If the named plants are in the immediate vicinity of pasture or land, the herb should be removed. Successful resistance can be the use of herbicides and alternative measures such as frequent fertilization and mowing of grazing land. „So the poisonous herb can be well displaced!“ (Sb)