Research - Different Poison Berries

Research - Different Poison Berries

Today i will be diving further into our groups chosen idea; i will research the key different poisonous berries and the effects they produce on people in order to help with knowing which type the characters should use and how to produce effects which are similar to the actual symptoms of eating the berries.

The Deadly nightshade

This berry can be found in Europe, the West of Asia and North Africa. It grows from the fleshy rootstock, often a something called a subshrub which is approximately 1.5 metres in height which has 18 cm oval shaped leaves. The flowers themselves have a shape similar to a bell with slight purple and green tints. The berries that are produced from this plant are originally green but once ripe they are black and shiny, they have a diameter of 1cm. It takes between 2-5 of these berries to kill an adult, the poisoning effect they have on humans in known as belladonna poisoning which produce deadly symptoms which disturb the parasympathetic nervous system which controls functions such as heart rate, sweating and breathing; then eventually leading to death.

The White Baneberry

This berry is a perennial herb which is located in the east of North America. The plant can grow up to 50cm tall and 90cm wide, it produces white flower in the spring and then a berry which has the diameter of 1cm which is white and round with a small black dot in the middle thus providing the nickname of 'dolls-eyes'. The berries contain toxins known as cardiogenic toxins which immediately sedate the tissue of the cardiac muscles. If too many berries are consumed then symptoms such as dizziness, hallucinations, extreme stomach cramps and even diarrhea
 which would eventually lead to death.

The Daphne Mezereon

This berry can be found natively in the vast majority of europe as well as Russia and towards the west of asia. It comes from a shrub that can grow up to approximately 1.5 m tall, it produces flowers at the start of spring and then leaves are produced later on. The berris themselves have very small diameter about 7-12mm. they are extremely toxic and produce effects such as a choking sensation which is then accompanied by headaches, diarrhea and severe pain in the abdominal area. Finally they also irritate the skin by causing swelling and blisters.

The Elderberry

The elderberry contains a 'cyanide inducing glycoside' within the seeds, leaves, stems and roots which come from the plant in which the elderberry comes from. The poison produces cyanide to rapidly build in the body which could cause diarrhea, a coma or vomiting before death. However the berry has a pleasing taste which could lure could make children more vulnerable to his berry.

Please Note - the information shown above has been researched by using these two websites,  Caloriebee(https://caloriebee.com/nutrition/10-Poisonous-Berries-That-Can-Kill-You) and Mashed(https://www.mashed.com/98132/dangerous-fruits-world/)

This research has thoroughly helped to make our opening scene more accurate with realistic details, specifically the Daphne Mezereon berry is the most ideal candidate to feature in the opening scene since it produces symptoms such skin blistering which can be done through makeup which can appear horrific along with the choking effey which we could replicate with a pump.