They may be festive, but some winter holiday plants could be dangerous to young children or pets exploring all the tastes of the season.

If eaten, several popular plants--including mistletoe, holly and some lilies--can be poisonous. One common winter plant, however, is not as dangerous as many people believe.

The widespread myth that poinsettias are dangerous if eaten seems to stem in part from the fact that poinsettias are technically "toxic"--according to the definition used by plant experts--but not deadly. As a result, poinsettias often appear on lists of toxic plants, according to Larry J. Thompson, DVM, PhD, clinical toxicologist at the University of Georgia Veterinary Diagnostic and Investigational Lab.

"Their toxicity is such that they don't kill people or animals but they can cause mouth irritation, they can cause vomiting, they can cause other local irritation effects. Now, some people will say, 'That's not a toxic plant because it doesn't kill anyone.' But our definition of toxic includes those local irritation effects," Thompson explains.

The story of a young boy's mysterious death early in the 1900s, which some suspect came after he ate part of a poinsettia plant, seems to have become part of the mainstream consciousness, Thompson says, but the story has never been confirmed, and a number of studies have shown that poinsettia leaves are not lethal if eaten--but still the story persists.

"We've been trying to dispel that myth for years now," says Mary A. McCormick, PharmD, director of the Connecticut Poison Control Center at the University of Connecticut Health Center.

Holly and mistletoe berries are dangerous if eaten, McCormick says, although holly plants have a natural way of keeping people and pets away from the harmful berries--those sharp-ended leaves.

Often the real berries on decorative holly and mistletoe plants are replaced with artificial, plastic berries--"but those might not be better, because they pose a choking hazard," McCormick says.

Similarly, pieces of evergreen or pine needles could be dangerous if a young child puts them in their mouth. McCormick recommends keeping the floor below a real Christmas tree or decorative boughs clean and needle-free.

An all-around safe holiday plant is the Christmas cactus, says McCormick.

To deck the halls safely, McCormick suggests looking your home over for holiday hazards at child's-eye level, since some dangers may be hard to see at first glance.

"Most of the time, common sense will really avoid problems," says Thompson. If you have a curious toddler or a pet that likes plants, he says, put the plants up high to prevent problems.

For pets, excessive drooling doesn't always indicate a poisoning, Thompson says, since some animals salivate excessively simply when they encounter a bitter flavor. "Cats are notorious for that," he says. "People think their cat is poisoned where actually, it's a bad taste in their mouth."

Keep an eye on pets for a little while if you suspect they may have eaten something harmful. Get as much information as you can--check to see if the pet really did eat some of the plant, for instance--before calling your pet's veterinarian, Thompson says. Also, he adds, don't worry about small exposures, such as if a pet bites off a small part of a leaf.

Some lilies, such as the Easter lily, can cause kidney failure in cats if ingested, Thompson adds.

(From Medscape)