A woman from Germany was poisoned after she ate a batch of the "mad honey" she had brought back from Turkey. She collapsed soon after having it and was immediately rushed to the hospital.
The hallucinogenic "mad honey" is a specialty in the Black Sea area of Turkey and has been used for hundreds of years as a treatment for diabetes and sexual dysfunction.
However, it can cause dangerously low blood pressure if taken in large amounts, which in turn can lead to heart failure if the organ doesn't pump enough blood around the body.
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Though the German woman came out of the near-death ordeal after consuming the honey, she still eats it as her husband believes in its therapeutic benefits.
The mad honey which is known as deli bal in Turkey is strikingly different to the conventional honey bought in supermarkets.
It contains an ingredient from rhododendron nectar known as grayanotoxin — a natural neurotoxin which when consumed even in small quantities can bring on light-headedness and sometimes hallucinations.
The woman began vomiting and sweating before she eventually collapsed in the street after taking it. She was then rushed to St Marien-Hospital where tests showed she had bradycardia.
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The doctors at first thought her dangerously low blood pressure was triggered by a heart attack and she was soon taken to the intensive care. The tests, however, showed negative results. After questioning her spouse, the doctors got to know that the symptoms began around an hour after she had consumed a Turkish honey.
German "honey specialist" then looked into the case and revealed that the cause of her symptoms was likely grayanotoxin. The woman made a full recovery within 24 hours.
