White Snakeroot

White Snakeroot, a plant that grows in the Ohio River Valley, is harmless to cows but acts as a potent neurotoxin in humans. Often, half the people in a frontier settlement would die after drinking milk contaminated by cows that had fed on White Snakeroot. Known as milk sickness, this poisoning once killed thousands of Midwestern migrants, including Abraham Lincoln's mother, due to the toxic buildup in dairy products.

Previous Fact Next Fact