"They Look Just Like Chestnuts"...Carelessly Picking Them Up Could Be Dangerous: Avoid Eating These Street Fruits

Frequent Cases of Mistaking Marronnier Fruit for Chestnuts Due to Similar Appearance

Toxic Compounds Remain Even After Boiling or Roasting

Recently, there have been multiple warnings and reports shared on social networking services (SNS) about people mistaking Marronnier fruit for chestnuts and attempting to eat them. This has led to renewed warnings against eating fruits found on the streets during the autumn season.

One SNS user recently posted a photo comparing chestnuts and Marronnier fruit, warning, "You could end up in the hospital while collecting chestnuts."

The author explained that while looking for fresh chestnuts to use in galbijjim (braised short ribs), they noticed many fruit resembling chestnuts fallen along the street and picked them up. However, after checking the photos, they realized these were actually Marronnier fruit. The user cautioned, "It's easy to get confused while picking up chestnut-like fruits along the road in autumn."

Marronnier fruit. It looks similar to chestnuts but contains toxic components such as esculin, making it potentially dangerous if ingested. Screenshot from social networking service (SNS)

Marronnier trees are commonly planted as street or landscape trees, so their fruit often falls in city parks or along walking paths. The fruit looks similar to edible chestnuts, including a similar appearance when cut open. However, Marronnier fruit contains toxic components such as esculin. Consuming them can cause symptoms like vomiting, abdominal pain, diarrhea, and dizziness, and in severe cases may lead to difficulty breathing.

The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety also issued a warning last year through its official channels, noting that a brown fruit mistaken for a chestnut could in fact be toxic Marronnier fruit. According to the Ministry, Marronnier fruit has not been recognized as an approved food ingredient.

Cases of confusing edible chestnuts with Marronnier fruit have also been reported overseas. In a study analyzing data from the French Poison Control Center, 11 percent of the cases between 2012 and 2018 involving confusion between edible and toxic plants were due to mistaking Marronnier fruit for edible chestnuts, accounting for a significant proportion of such incidents.

There are several ways to distinguish between chestnuts and Marronnier fruit. Chestnuts have a pointed tip at the end, while Marronnier fruit are generally round with no distinct tip. The outer shell is also different: chestnut burrs have long, sharp spines that are densely packed, whereas Marronnier fruit have shorter, thicker spines that are more sparsely distributed.

Experts and health authorities emphasize that the safest approach is to avoid eating any wild fruit unless you are certain of its origin and type.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.