Sooo... Kiwano (horned melon) poisonous or not?

Question

After eating what I thought to be a delightful fruit, I looked online for more information about the kiwano and found some sites that suggested the kiwano was poisonous.

So, my botany friends, should I be worried about the toxicity? Should I eat it again? Can anyone link an official site that discusses its toxicity (or lack thereof).

Answer 1

Toxicities of Kiwano

Cucurbitacines are present in some accessions of Cucumis metuliferus, making it extremely bitter. These compounds are very toxic to mammals, however as they are the most bitter substances known they are also feeding deterrents and very rarely eaten by mammals. The non-bitter comercial cultivars do not contain cucurbitacines and are not toxic.

There are reports that, as in many plants, the sprouting seed produces a toxic substance in its embryo. In addition, seeds are traditionally also ground into a fine flour and taken with water as a vermifuge to expel tapeworms or other parasites.

Suggested uses include mixing with ice cream and maybe a touch of sugar. In Africa the edible ones are eaten for the juicy seed mass and the highly toxic ones are harvested for the seeds which are non-toxic and edible.

http://www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/CropF...

http://www.clovegarden.com/ingred/ml_kiw...

http://www.pfaf.org/database/plants.php?...

Answer 2

its fine to eat the skin has a small amount of toxicity (not enough to kill even a rat) but the fruit is fine to eat