In the Season 3 finale of “The White Lotus,” viewers were taken on a tense journey as Timothy Ratliff contemplates poisoning his family with the toxic pong-pong tree seeds rather than face their disappointment over losing their fortune. The pong-pong tree, or Cerbera odollam, is indigenous to South and Southeast Asia, and its fruit contains a cardiotoxin that can be fatal if ingested. The toxin attacks the heart’s pump, leading to symptoms like vomiting and a drop in heart rate. Historically, the pong-pong fruit has been used for suicide attempts and in trials by ordeal to determine guilt or innocence.
In the episode, Lochlan Ratliff becomes sick after consuming pulverized pong-pong fruit seeds, raising questions about whether he could have survived. Medical toxicologist Dr. Mary Wermuth explains that symptoms of pong-pong poisoning can appear as early as three hours after ingestion. While Lochlan’s survival may stretch the limits of medical plausibility, in real life, treatment for pong-pong poisoning would involve an antidote called digoxin immune fab.
The use of pong-pong fruit in the episode highlights the dangers of consuming toxic plants and the potential consequences of such actions. This storyline sheds light on the dark history of the fruit and its role in traditional practices of judgment and punishment. As viewers are left stunned by the events of the finale, experts caution that the reality of pong-pong poisoning is not as easily overcome as it may seem on television.
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