10 Seemingly Harmless Things You Didn't Realise Killed People

5. St Anthony's Fire

Huh? St Who's what? It's all about foodstuffs and we're not just talking nut allergies here. We all know that if you have a specific condition then some foods can kill. Neither am I talking about parts of animals that you should know better than to eat, such as the 'dead man's fingers' from a crab, or parts of a pufferfish. Harm can come from the most innocuous directions when it comes to foodstuffs and seemingly natural, wholesome products at that. Anyhow, the fire. You probably thought you were clear of this one, since you know no saints and at any rate had never heard of one likely to fire at you. St Anthony's Fire, - Ignis Sacer for the classicists out there €“ is the ancient name for ergotism, or ergot poisoning. Leaving you with gangrene and a tendency to hallucinate, this has definitely been around since at least the middle ages. Some historians think that many witchcraft events, such as at Salem, can be explained by bread contaminated with ergot. The likelihood of your getting it is remote in modern times, but where dampness, cool conditions, a delayed harvest in lowland crops and rye consumption combine, an outbreak is possible. So, watch out. That loaf of bread you're taking home might not be all that it's cracked up to be. On the plus side, modern occurrences do not happen often. It is a blight that affects rye especially, but other grains are known to suffer from it. The last major outbreak happened in Ethiopia in 2001. Popcorn, that's another. If you microwave it and inhale the stuff that they add to it to give that buttery taste - diacetyl for the chemistry minded out there - then you could damage your lungs. Don't be too alarmed at this, since you would probably need to eat several large bags of it per week to inhale harmful quantities. Still, makes you think. I wonder if eating popcorn is a new occupational hazard for professional film critics other than being ignored by people that like the films they pan?