Castor bean has an impressive look but the whole plant is toxic. It's considered the most dangerous and most poisonous plant in the world. Castor oil is safe, and used for medicinal purposes. Despite having bean in it's name, castor bean isn't a true bean. The poison ricin is made from this plant, which can lead to death. The belief in magickal plants has castor bean used for protection, absorbing evil, stopping evil eye and negativity.
It's also commonly called castor oil, palm of Christ, or Palma Christi. The scientific botanical name is Ricinus communis. Other names include African Coffee Tree, Arandi, Bi Ma Zi, Bofareira, Castorbean, Castor Bean Plant, Castor Oil Plant, Castor Seed, Erand, Eranda, Gandharva Hasta, Graine de Ricin, Huile de Ricin, Huile de Ricin Végétale, Mexico Weed, Palma Christi, Ricin, Ricin Commun, Ricin Sanguin, Ricine, Ricino, Ricinus sanguines, Tangantangan Oil Plant, Wonder Tree.
Key Points
- popular medicinal use for the castor oil
- most dangerous and poisonous plant according to Guinness Book of records
- magic believers use it to stop evil
- not edible apart from castor oil
History
Ricinus is Latin and means tick. The seed has marking and a bump at the end that resembles a tick. The name of castor probably comes from it's replacement for the perfume castoreum made from died perineal glands of the beaver (castor in Latin).
Castor seeds have been found in Egyptian tombs dated to 4,000 BC. Castor oil has long been used to fuel lamps as a slow burning oil. Herodotus noted it's use also for improving hair growth and texture. The Ebers Papyrus, dated to 1552 BC, is an ancient Egyptian medical treatise that described castor oil as a laxative.
It's been used in India since at least 2,000 BC as a laxative, purgative and cathartic, and is considered the king of medicinals for curing arthritic disease in Traditional Ayurvedic medicine.
Pliny the Elder described the use of leaves by the ancient Romans:
"The leaves are applied topically with vinegar for erysipelas, and fresh-gathered, they are used by themselves for diseases of the mamillæ [breasts] and de- fluxions; a decoction of them in wine, with polenta and saffron, is good for inflammations of various kinds. Boiled by themselves, and applied to the face for three successive days, they improve the complexion."
Where is it found?
Indigenous to Mediterranean Basin, Eastern Africa, and India, and widespread in tropical regions. It's planted as an ornamental in many other regions, and has been naturalized into Europe and North America.
What's it used for?
Seeds contain 35-55% of an edible oil, castor oil, that can be used in cooking. The poisonous ricin is water soluble and doesn't stay in the oil. The oil is made by pressing the ripe seed with outer covering removed. The hulls contain ricin.
Castor seeds are used for birth control, constipation, leprosy, and syphilis. Castor oil is used as a laxative for constipation, to start labor in pregnancy, and to start the flow of breast milk. It has anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial and antioxidant properties.
Applied to the skin, the oil is used as a poultice for inflammatory skin disorders, boils, carbuncles, pockets of infection (abscesses), inflammation of the middle ear, and migraine headaches. Also to to soften skin, bunions and corns; and to dissolve cysts, growths, warts and osteoarthritis. Some women have put it inside the vagina for birth control or to cause abortion. Applied to the eyes it soothes membranes irritated by dust or other materials.
Castor oil is used in manufacturing to make paint, varnishes and lubricating oils.
It's a powerful chemical agent of warfare, with the smaller particles being more dangerous and can be breathed in to kill.
Are there any risks?
Castor oil can cause stomach discomfort, cramping, nausea, and faintness. Eye drops are safe for up to 30 days (longer is unknown). Long term use of castor oil might be unsafe, as it might cause fluid and potassium loss from the body when used for more than a week in doses larger than 15-60ml per day.
Whole seeds, with the hull, are unsafe. Initially it can cause nausea; vomiting; diarrhea; abdominal pain; dehydration; shock; blood cell destruction; severe fluid and chemical disturbances; liver, kidney, and pancreas damage, and eventually death. ALl it takes is 1-6 seeds chewed to result in death.
Children should be limited in the amount of castor oil taken, 1-15ml per day. Pregnant women should avoid use, as it can force labor early.
References:
Previous posts on Getting to Know Herbs:
Agrimony | Tansy | Absinthe or Wormwood | Nettle | Peppermint | Dandelion | Feverfew | Lemon Balm | Hawthorn | Chickweed | Northern Bayberry | Lady's Mantle | Hyssop | Burdock | Catnip | Lavender | Yarrow | Marshmallow | Skullcap | Codonopsis (Poor Man's Ginseng) | Schisandra | Rhodiola | Canadian Goldenrod | German Chamomile | Blue Vervain | Blessed or Holy Thistle | Common Horehound | Cayenne | Ashwagandha | Gotu Kola | Common Verbana/Vervain | Holy Basil | Sweet Annie | Globe Artichoke | Butterfly Weed / Pleurisy Root | Joe-Pye Weed / Gravel Root | Valerian | Malva/Mallow | Boneset | Elecampane | Lungwort | Cramp Bark | Motherwort | Common Plantain | Eleuthero (Siberian ginseng) | Black Cohosh | Common Bearberry | Mahonia Mountain Grape (Oregon Grape) | Blue Cohosh | Goldenseal
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