During the Third Mithridatic War, the Roman army was subject to a ruthless ambush after a mass poisoning event left hundreds of soldiers unconscious. In their weakened state, forces belonging to King Mithridates Eupator VI of Pontus took the opportunity to attack the army, killing hundreds of men in one go.

The poison? Mad honey.

Regular honey has been a fixture in folk medicine for at least the last 4,000 years, during which time it has been used to treat maladies ranging from colds to gastritis, according to a study in RSC Advances.

And while the scientific evidence is somewhat limited, the syrupy substance has been linked to certain health benefits, including improvements in cardiovascular fitness, glucose tolerance and wound healing, according to a review published in the journal Nutrients. At the very minimum, it is considered a safe (if high sugar) food.

That is not the case for mad honey, which is contaminated with neurotoxins from the rhododendron plant and can, in worst-case scenarios, prove fatal. Nevertheless, some take the risk and ingest mad honey for its supposed aphrodisiac properties. Others, more nefariously, have used the sticky substance as a chemical weapon.

Read More: Why Birds Are Conspiring with Honey Badgers to Steal Honey

Is Mad Honey The World’s First Chemical Weapon?

The ambush of the Roman soldiers was masterminded by Mithridates and his chief counselor, and involved placing combs of mad honey in the path of the invading army, who unwittingly took the bait. But it is not the first time mad honey was used as a weapon.

Indeed, according to a paper published in Wilderness & Environmental Medicine, mad honey poisoning was first recorded by the Greek historian and commander Xenophon in 401 B.C.E., after he fought in the Turkish province of Trabzon. In his writings, referenced in JAMA, he compared soldiers who had eaten the honey to madmen and people at the point of death.

Fortunately for them, recovery was swift. Roughly 24 hours after eating the honey, the soldiers awoke, and by the fourth day, they were able to continue the march.

Why Do People Consume Mad Honey?

Today, mad honey is more often voluntarily digested. Despite its dangers, it is consumed for its supposed (but completely unproven) aphrodisiac effects. The most frequent consumers of mad honey are, according to the paper in RSC Advances, middle-aged men looking to boost their sexual performance. It is also used as an alternative therapy to treat a number of conditions, ranging from high blood pressure and gastrointestinal issues to coronary artery disease, according to reports from Food and Chemical Toxicology and the Hellenic Journal of Cardiology.

In the past, mad honey has also been said to cure sunburn, cure indispositions caused by eating fish and, in the words of Pliny the Elder, “there is nothing better…for softening the skin of females.”

What Makes Honey Mad?

Mad honey is tainted with a group of toxic compounds, called grayanotoxins, found in the leaves, flowers, pollen and nectar of some species of Rhododendron.

When consumed, the compounds bind to the body’s sodium ion channels. This prevents them from inactivating and causes a prolonged state of depolarization and increased vagal tone, which is associated with a lower heart rate and irregular heartbeat.

What Are The Symptoms Of Mad Honey Intoxication?

Mad honey poisoning can cause a range of symptoms, including dizziness, blurred vision, nausea, vomiting, and an altered mental state.

It can also trigger life-threatening effects, such as respiratory depression (where breathing is too slow or too shallow) and cardiac disorders, including atrial fibrillation and bradycardia (when heart rate is abnormally low).

However, severity can vary depending on the type and concentration of the toxin, the patient's sensitivity, and the total amount of honey consumed. The paper published in RSC Advances, for example, notes symptoms such as vomiting and second-degree heart block are both less common and less extreme in female patients than in males.

How Is Mad Honey Treated?

Today, cases of mad honey poisoning are often treated with saline infusion and atropine. More extreme cases may also require a temporary pacemaker.

Fortunately, while symptoms can appear life-threatening, it is very rarely fatal, especially with the help of modern medicine.

Read More: Honey's Eternal Shelf Life, Explained

Article Sources

Our writers at Discovermagazine.com use peer-reviewed studies and high-quality sources for our articles, and our editors review for scientific accuracy and editorial standards. Review the sources used below for this article:

• This article references information from a study published in RSC Advances: Mad honey: uses, intoxicating/poisoning effects, diagnosis, and treatment
• This article references information from a study published in Wilderness & Environmental Medicine: The Honey, The Poison, The Weapon
• This article references information from a study published in Nutrients: A Comprehensive Review of the Effect of Honey on Human Health
• This article references information from a study published in Food and Chemical Toxicology: Mad honey intoxication: A systemic review on the 1199 cases
• This article references information from a study published in the Hellenic Journal of Cardiology:Bradycardia and Severe Hypotension Caused by Wild Honey Poisoning
• This article references information from a study published in JAMA: Rhododendrons, Mountain Laurel, and Mad Honey