Poinsettias are members of a large and diverse family of flowering plants called Euphorbiaceae which has more than 7,500 species. The largest genus in that family, Euphorbia, has more than 2,100 species. Most euphorbs have a white or occasionally yellowish milky sap that is under pressure and will quickly well up or even spurt out. Sometimes a gentle touch is enough to break the skin of a euphorb, causing the sap to appear immediately. On contact with air the sap quickly congeals and seals the break. What’s more, the milky sap contains rubbery latex plus a rich cocktail of organic chemicals with varying degrees of toxicity that can kill insects, snails, or even mammals that try to feed on euphorbs. Many type of milky sap can cause severe skin or eye irritation. The sap of some plants is 10,000 to 100,000 times more irritating than capsaicin, the stinging bite in hot chili peppers. Getting euphorb sap in the eye will be painful and will affect vision for a few days, but it won’t last long. Eating the plant parts of Borne euphorbs can cause vomiting or digestive upset, but nothing more unless you have a severe sensitivity to latex. Other euphorbs can be highly toxic.
So what good are the plants from the genus Euphorbia? Because the genus is so large and each plant produces a wide variety of organic chemicals, euphorbs have played an important role in medical therapy. Some concoctions from various Euphorbia have been part of folk medicine for hundreds of years. One can quickly find reports of extracts from euphorbs with the power to calm digestive upset, cure colic and cancer, rid the body of intestinal parasites, and treat skin diseases, migraines, etc. Some of the most interesting recent testing I have discovered involved culturing cancer cell with euphorb extracts added to the growth medium. Cancer cells failed to grow, while normal cells remained unaffected. That is good news to pharmacologists searching for a plant-based drug that will attack cancer cells selectively and without side effects. Researchers have also developed compounds to kill snails and insects. Certainly our Creator knew what He was doing, and with our new analytical machines and knowledge of bioactive molecules, we better understand the phrase: “And God saw that it was good.”
Lord, use the bitter experiences of my life as a healing balm for others.