“While their domestic cousins we grow in the garden and buy in the store, tend to have less but varying amounts of the bitter compound.”Ĭross-pollination with wild plants as well as some type of stress during growth, such as lack of adequate water or poor fertilization, are some of the factors believed to cause increased cucurbitacin in squash and other produce. “Wild cucumbers contain relatively large concentrations of cucurbitacin and are highly bitter,” said Oregon State University vegetable breeder Jim Myers. While wild squash, cucumbers and other cucurbits can contain substantial amounts of cucurbitacin, the cultured varieties typically contain such a small amount that it doesn’t affect humans. Plants in the Cucurbitaceae family produce the toxin cucurbitacin as a natural defense against insects.
Getty Images | Mario Tama How Squash Becomes ‘Toxic’
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Learning how it occurs, how to avoid it and what to do if you should ever contract toxic squash syndrome can help you protect yourself and your family. Although it can be quite serious, cucurbit poisoning is also very rare. There’s no need to rid your kitchen of every zucchini or cucumber. Squash can contain a toxic compound called cucurbitacin E., which can cause cucurbit poisoning, also known as toxic squash syndrome (not to be confused with toxic shock syndrome) in people who ingest it.Ī March 2018 report published in the Journal of the American Medical Association tells of two French women who became quite ill and experienced massive hair loss following unrelated cases of cucurbit poisoning. However, they could also make you quite ill if you’re not careful. Cucurbits are a gourd family of flowering plants that include cucumbers, melons, squash and pumpkins, which can be delicious, healthful foods to enjoy in your diet. You may not have heard the word Cucurbitaceae before, but chances are you’ve eaten some before.
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