When I was growing up I was wary of the rhubarb growing in the back garden. It was the one plant that came with a warning: Do not eat the leaves. That warning left me with the impression that if I were to lick a leaf, it'd be lights out for me.
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Not long ago I stumbled across a paper which estimated that a 130-pound woman would need to consume ten pounds of rhubarb leaves for toxicity to build up to lethal levels. That's a lot of leafy greens. I'm sure I'm not the first person to wonder what renders rhubarb leaves inedible. That mystery substance is oxalic acid and when ingested it can bind to several key nutrients including calcium, iron, sodium, magnesium and/or potassium, interfering with the body's ability to properly absorb them. Rhubarb leaves are not the only place where oxalic acid is found. It's also present in chocolate, coffee, strawberries, cranberries, nuts, beans, beets, bell peppers, parsley, peas, potatoes, spinach, Swiss chard, summer squash, sweet potatoes, tea - and the list goes on. Rhubarb stems also contain measurable amounts, but it’s the excessive level in the leaves which make them inedible. |
 Photo by: Vanessa Farnsworth |
Although I was once convinced I would die if I licked a rhubarb leaf, the more likely outcome would've been abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, weakness, drowsiness, breathing difficulties or convulsions. Not nice, for sure, but not instant death either.
If you have any questions or comments, please send them to me at vanessa@gardenmuse.ca.
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