Poisoning....it Doesn't Just Happen in Mystery Novels!

Hey guys! A few days ago I finished "The Mysterious Affair at Styles," by Agatha Christie. The mystery is about an elderly old lady who was poisoned with a deadly chemical called strychnine. Among the suspects are her young husband who sits to inherit all of her money, a jealous daughter-in-law, two angry stepsons, and numerous cunning servants. The famous detective, Hercule Poirot, makes his first appearance in this novel and works in conjunction with the Scotland Yard. Needless to say, you will be shocked by the ending. Well,  I won't spoil the ending for you.....you should all check it out (http://www.amazon.com/Mysterious-Affair-Styles-Detective-Story/dp/1453757430/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1294889595&sr=1-1). 


Anyways, today I've decided to talk about strychnine poisoning as it relates to the real world. Strychnine poisoning is fatal and one of the most dramatic and painful of all poisons (why Christie would use it). 10 to 20 minutes after taking it one begins to have seizures. Over time these seizures increase in frequency and intensity. The subject will usually die after 2-3 hours due to suffocation, as the poison blocks the respiratory system. An attractive quality of strychnine for mystery writers is that its only known antidote is very elusive. Therefore it's not uncommon for someone to die without even knowing what has happened to them. Another ideal trait is that it's easy to disguise strychnine in food and drinks, as it's a white odorless powder (in the book the criminal puts the poison in her evening tea). There are also many different ways to ingest strychnine: eating, drinking, breathing, even through the eyes! You might be  thinking....ok but does this even happen in real life? YES, it does! The deaths of the famous Alexander the Great and Jane Stanford (founder of Stanford University), among others were direct results of this!

Websites I used here were:

http://www.michigan.gov/dnr/0,1607,7-153-10370_12150_12220-27278--,00.html

http://www.bt.cdc.gov/agent/strychnine/basics/facts.asp

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strychnine_poisoning

I found that all these websites were very credible and usable. I was skeptical about the Wikipedia website but i crossed it with the Center for Disease Control website as well as the Department of Natural Resources website, and the information matched. I was pleased with all of the sources, as they were also very accessible and easy to use.