Summary:

Ackee (Blighia sapida) is the national fruit of Jamaica and grows in clusters on evergreen trees. Hypoglycin A (the toxic substance in ackee) is contained in the aril, seeds, and husks of ackee fruit at various stages of ripeness. The ingestion of unripe ackee for the purpose of medicinal or nutritional purposes may cause poisoning and/or death. At this time, there are no high-quality human trials supporting the efficacy of ackee for any indication.

Uses:

No human scientific evidence available that qualifies for grading.

Safety:

Avoid if allergic/hypersensitive to ackee (Blighia sapida) or any of its constituents, or to other members of the Sapindaceae family. Use cautiously with diabetes. Avoid eating unripe or overripe ackee fruit. If boiling ackee fruit in water, dispose of water immediately afterwards and do not reuse. Avoid if pregnant or breastfeeding.

Possible side effects:

Abdominal pain, cholestatic jaundice, coma, confusion, convulsions, death, diarrhea, dizziness, fatal encephalopathy (brain disease), fall in blood glucose, fatty degeneration of the liver, headache, hypotonia (decreased or low muscle tone), increased platelets without anemia, intense thirst, Jamaican vomiting sickness, liver centrilobular zonal necrosis, nausea, neutropenia (an abnormal decrease in the number of certain white blood cells in the blood), pronounced sweating, pruritis (severe itching), pulmonary (lung) toxicities, right upper quadrant pain, slight fever, stupor, tachycardia (rapid heart beat), tachypnea (rapid breathing), tonic-clonic convulsions, toxic hypoglycemic syndrome, vomiting and weakness.

Possible interactions:

Oral diabetes drugs, methylene blue (MB), hypoglycemic/hyperglycemic herbs, and herbs and supplements with similar effects.

Dosing:

Adults (18 years and older):

Not enough scientific data available.

Children (younger than 18 years):

Not enough scientific data available.