The world’s most toxic plants service personnel should be wary about

Various plant species are widely distributed across the world; commonly exploited for their nutritive, recreational, and medicinal functions. However, many plants are known to contain toxins, a group of chemical agents capable of causing deleterious effects in humans and animals. With their high proximity to plants of different kinds, service personnel can be exposed to these toxins through ingestion, inhalation, and dermal or eye contact. This chapter presents and discusses some of the plants that service personnel must get aware of and, systematically, plant to manage them and their potential effects. These plants include those that have anticholinergic agents (Brugmansia species), calcium oxalate crystals (Dieffenbachia species), toxalbumins (Ricinus communis, Abrus precatorius), cardioactive glycosides (Nerium oleander, Digitalis purpurea, Cerberin odollam), convulsants (Conium maculatum), sodium channel activators (Rhododendron species), and irritants (Hippomane mancinella). To minimize intoxication with phytotoxins, service personnel need to be aware of such poisonous plants and how the toxins interact with the human body. Formally including phytochemistry in the military, police, prison, and immigration personnel’s training curriculum could be one of the best ways to best fit its knowledge for the safety of the personnel in operations.