Pine Nut Syndrome exists (and you don’t want to suffer from it)
Have you ever experienced a bitter, metallic taste in your mouth after eating pine nuts? Then you’re not the only one. Although it doesn’t happen very often, it’s an unpleasant condition that can bother people for weeks (!). How does it happen?
The problem often doesn’t arise while eating the pine nuts at all, but can occur days after consumption and persist for a long time. It is also known as PNS (Pine Nut Syndrome), but because it isn’t all that common, little research is being done into it. The most recent results appear to be those of Leiden University geneticist Ben Zonneveld. He specializes in determining the amount of DNA per cell nucleus (genome size) of plants, which allows him to distinguish well between different plant species—including different types of pine nuts.
Or like sucking on a nickel
It seems that nothing can get rid of the taste, and for those affected, it’s incredibly annoying. The symptoms do disappear on their own, but they can last for up to two weeks and be so overpowering that everything people eat or drink during those days tastes bitter, metallic and disgusting.
A pig in a poke
According to the FAO (the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations), there are 29 pine tree species whose nuts are edible. Zonneveld studied the genome size of the most common pine nuts sold in Dutch supermarkets, and after extensive personal testing (reluctantly, because he and his wife are both sensitive to PNS), he discovered that the culprit is most likely the cheap, mass-produced Pinus armandii: a small, oval, grayish nut. Scientists are rightly very cautious about drawing conclusions when no further evidence has been found by others, but as mentioned, unfortunately no conclusive evidence has been provided so far. The annoying thing is that, if P. armandii really is the cause, it may also turn up in packets containing a mix of different varieties. So you never know whether you’ve drawn the short straw with a packet. You seem to be safest with the somewhat more expensive nuts, and if you can buy them from a specialist nut shop, be sure to ask about their quality.
This makes eating pesto just a little more exciting, doesn’t it? It depends on what you consider living on the edge, but we simply can’t resist a good homemade pesto… And otherwise, you can always get started with a pesto made with other nuts!
Sources: Leids Universitair Weekblad, Gezondheidsnet, Kassa
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