Toxic pumpkins pose health risks

As Halloween approaches and temperatures drop, pumpkins are returning to autumn recipes in various forms, including soup, mashed, and roasted dishes. However, caution is advised, as not all pumpkins are edible and some can be toxic.

Not all pumpkins are safe to eat

Certain pumpkins, including gourds, are only intended for decoration and should not be consumed. They contain cucurbitacins, toxic substances with a very bitter taste that wild pumpkins naturally produce to repel predatory insects.

Toxic substances remain dangerous after cooking

These substances can cause digestive issues and are resistant to cooking: even when cooked, toxic pumpkins remain dangerous. After ingestion, they can cause abdominal pain, vomiting, and diarrhea, sometimes bloody.

Health risks and prevention

In the most severe cases, significant dehydration may require hospitalization, warns the French National Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health Safety (Anses). To avoid any risk, it is better to reserve ornamental pumpkins for decoration, both indoors and outdoors.

How to identify edible pumpkins

Before buying a pumpkin to cook, check that it is intended for consumption or ask the seller for advice. The Anses also recommends relying on taste: if a food pumpkin, purchased in stores or harvested from the garden, has an unusual bitterness, immediately spit out the piece and throw away the vegetable. Do not consume it, even after cooking.

Risks with homegrown pumpkins

Caution is also advised with pumpkins grown in your own garden. Some may become unsuitable for consumption after hybridization between edible varieties and wild or ornamental pumpkins. It is therefore not recommended to eat pumpkins that grow spontaneously and to collect seeds from previous harvests to replant.

What to do if you’ve eaten a toxic pumpkin

Finally, if you have consumed a potentially toxic pumpkin, do not delay in seeking advice. In case of severe symptoms, call 15 or 112. In other cases, contact a poison control center, even if symptoms have not yet appeared, to know what to do.