Eating too much bananas can kill you

Question

This article by Eat This, Not That! states the dangers of eating too much bananas and mentions about potential overdose on bananas with its side effects. The article ends off by telling you to eat bananas in moderation. Does eating too much bananas raise your chances of death?

Comments

I will preface this comment by stating, yes in theory eating too many bananas can kill you. Now, the way that this was phrased is extremely misleading. It would take about 400 bananas consumed in one sitting to injest enough potassium to poison yourself. This means you would have to consume over 40,000 calories worth of bananas to get potassium poisoning. Another concern that you didn't address but is widely debated is that bananas contain some levels of radiation that could harm you. A banana contains about 0.1 microsieverts of radiation on average, which initially could be considered concering. However, a CT scan at a hospital contains about 100,000 times this amount, and it isn't considered dangerous.

Article: https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-34225517#:~:text=But%20for%20a%20healthy%20person,%2C%20very%20good%20for%20you.%22

---

I like that you straight up say how eating too many bananas can be bad. overall yes, eating too much bananas can lead to an overdose if consumed over a specific amount in a day. For me personally, I believe bananas have a good benefit as the potassium it contains helps my health. Supporting your point though, eating too much banana can ultimately lead to a fatal incident such as beta-blockers. in this article by MedicalNewsToday https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/271157#risks, it does a good job on supporting the benefits and risks of eating too much banana more in depth.

---

Interesting article but I think it just proves the common fact too much of anything can kill you cool find though

---

I guess by definition eating too many bananas can kill due to the fact that eating too much anything can kill you so I'm thinking the only reason you said that is due to all the potassium that you could consume when having a lot of bananas but no I still don't think this is true because nobody is gonna consume hundreds of this fruit in a day for no reason

---

as many has stated before me, is it the overuse of things that can cause harm or even kill you that truly is to stand the question. I mean everything in todays time according to so many accounts if overused can kill you, or consuming to much f something can kill you. While this was a very interesting topic and defiantly caught my eye in this.

---

What evidence is gathered that suggests only over consumption of bananas can kill you and not other foods?

Answer 1

Yes, this source is valid and what they are saying is factual. But don't let that scare you off from bananas. Consuming enough of any food can be harmful to a person. That being said it would take an obscene amount of bananas to kill you. St. George Hospital's dietitian Catherine Collins says that a healthy person would have to eat "around 400 bananas a day to build up the kind of potassium levels that would stop your heart." You would start to have digestive issues and would feel not so great well before than. So unless you're eating strictly bananas for an extended period of time, are taking medication for blood pressure or have kidney disease, then you will be just fine to eat a banana or two a day.

https://www.heart.org/en/news/2022/04/20/dont-go-bananas-but-maybe-eat-one

https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-34225517

Answer 2

It is true you can overdose on bananas, but it's highly unlikely. According to BBC.com, you can overdose on bananas, but it's highly unlikely a healthy person can. It would take 400 bananas to overdose. The article states, "Adults should consume about 3,500mg of potassium per day, according to the UK's National Health Service. The average banana, weighing 125g, contains 450mg of potassium, meaning a healthy person can consume at least seven-and-half bananas before reaching the recommended level." To americanize, that's 0.1234589 ounces per day, The average banana is 4.40925 ounces, containing 0.015873283 ounces of potassium. To answer your second question, It's generally unclear, however, if you do consume too much potassium on a daily you can develop a disease called hyperkalemia, which can lead to long-term effects like abdominal pain, diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, chest pain, irregular, fast, or fluttering heartbeat limbs that are weak or numb. All in all, you can die from bananas. However, It is difficult to and there are long-term effects, but it's again hard to tell or to develop. 

sources:

https://www.webmd.com/a-to-z-guides/hyperkalemia-potassium-importance

https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-34225517#:~:text=But%20for%20a%20healthy%20person,%2C%20very%20good%20for%20you.%22

https://www.kidney.org/kidney-topics/hyperkalemia-high-potassium

Comments

Interesting research! It’s surprising to think about how many bananas would actually be needed to reach dangerous potassium levels. Did your sources mention any differences in potassium tolerance based on factors like age, kidney function, or overall diet? Also, it's intriguing to see how specific the potassium calculations were! This shows how even common foods can have unexpected effects when consumed in extreme quantities.

---

This is very interesting. I like your response and the evidence you provided to support the claim. You also made it clear that it is very unlikely for someone to overdose on bananas but that it is possible. Good job on providing three credible sources!

---

I agree with you answer, death by bananas is possible but super unlikely. In most cases you would have to be actively eating as many bananas as you could, but even then I think you would feel very sick before getting to a dangerous level.

---

This is a great factcheck. I liked how you directly quoted sentences from the sources you used. I liked how you elaborated by explaining a big point of this claim which is potassium and the healthy amount of potassium a human needs. You did a great job explaining the dangers of consuming too much potassium, while also making it clear that overdosing on bananas would be extremely hard to do. I also liked how you included the sources you looked at.

---

You thoroughly explain with research from reliable sources why this claim is misleading. I was interested to learn that a human can overdose on potassium. You included how much potassium is in a banana and why it is relevant to the facts, showing how the claim was lacking crucial information. Overall, clear and sound fact check!

---

This is super interesting research for this topic! You went into very good detail about this claim which helped to prove how and why it can be very misleading. It's also very impressive that you included 3 different sources, proving that you took your time with researching for this fact-check.

---

I didn't know it was possible to overdose on bananas. You have very good research on this topic and summarised it very well

Answer 3

It is highly unlikely however, anything can be a poison in the right dose, so I suppose it is possible. An article by Bureau Veritas North America states: "Bananas contain potassium, and since potassium decays, that makes the yellow fruit slightly radioactive. But don’t worry—you’d need to eat ten million bananas in one sitting to die of banana-induced radiation poisoning." It is extremely unlikely that one would consume enough bananas in one sitting to kill them. 

Sources:

https://www.bvna.com/insight/fun-scientific-facts#:~:text=But%20don't%20worry%E2%80%94you,of%20banana%2Dinduced%20radiation%20poisoning.&text=Stomach%20acid%20is%20strong%20enough,pH%20of%202%20to%203. 

Comments

Thank you for this! You did a great job referencing a reliable source! This claim reminds me of the idea that eating apple seeds can kill you, however while technically speaking while it is true it is very misleading, so thank you for tagging your answer as such.

---

Your research was very well done! i think you did a great job with the evidence you found. As you said it is highly unlikely that eating too many bananas can kill you, you'd have to eat hundreds of bananas. Good job!

---

I agree with your answer to the question, but I feel that tagging it as misleading is not accurate. I felt that the article was pretty clear that you would need to eat a lot of bananas to before being ill. As well, they mentioned that as long as you aren't experiencing digestive issues then the amount of bananas you're consuming is fine.

---

I like how you prefaced that bananas are slightly radioactive but not incredibly dangerous. I feel like this could be a little more in-depth, maybe explaining in other ways that Banana Equivalent Dose shows, which is a way for scientists to compare radiation to! Other than that really good!

Answer 4

Overall, the article’s information seems to be true. Eating bananas is safe for most people as part of a healthy diet. However, eating too many bananas might cause some mild digestive problems for sensitive people. The article is based on nutrition science, but it would be better with specific medical studies. Also, I think the title "Eating too much bananas can kill you" is a little exaggerated, although it certainly grabs people's attention. In terms of source and author quality, the source "Eat This, Not That" isn’t an academic source. Some content is fact-checked, but it doesn’t always refer to original research. So, it would be better to check with trusted studies. The writer, Rebecca Strong, seems to have a lot of experience in health writing, but she isn’t an expert in nutritional science or gastroenterology. It can be said that she likely depends on information from other sources and quotes from experts. Also, the article was published in 2021, so it doesn't include the latest research. 

These are sources for supporting the article.

https://www.gastrojournal.org/article/S0016-5085%2883%2980163-2/fulltext

https://nutritionsource.hsph.harvard.edu/food-features/bananas/

Comments

This is a good response. You did well to not completely invalidate the original claim, as eating too many bananas (or anything for that matter) isn't good for you, but you also point out the places of exaggeration and the points at which the support for the claim fall a little flat. You did well in providing other sources that speak on the same content but do so in a more academic and/or trustworthy way, and give options for where one might find higher-quality sources. Nice work!

Answer 5

This source does not say that eating too many bananas can kill you. The only real mention of death in this is when one of their experts clarifies that "eating too much of any single food is not a good idea". The article just says that you should be eating a range of foods, not just one singular fruit or vegetable. Additionally, "raise your chances of death" is misleading as this article does not say anything about increasing chances of dying after eating an immense amount of bananas. However, the site does provide information about their authors and they all are certified with their information linked. I do believe this cite is credible, just that this specific claim is not entirely true.

https://www.eatthis.com/warning-sign-eating-too-many-bananas/

https://www.eatthis.com/medical-review-board/

Comments

This is a good response. You properly examined the specific claim within the article and found that the two held little direct support. I like how you phrased your concession regarding how the article did in fact clarify that eating too much of ANY single food should be avoided, de-crediting the argument behind Bananas "special lethality". I also particularly appreciate your analyzation of each of the individual authors that contributed to the articles information. I'd like to hear what other sources have to say about this topic, but overall nice work!

Answer 6

There is little to no backing behind bananas raising your risk of death. However, eating any food in extreme excess is dangerous if just for the lack of other nutrients needed for a balanced diet. Bananas are known to be an excellent source of potassium with around 450mg of potassium in each one. Harvard Health Publishing wrote that "Among all fruits, bananas are one of best sources of potassium, with about 450 milligrams (mg) per banana. Healthy adults not on certain medications should aim for 4,700 mg of potassium daily, although few Americans meet this goal." It's true however that if you have a history with digestive issues you might have them worsened by eating too many bananas. The Health Site wrote that this "mainly happens due to the high fiber content in bananas. And, consuming an excessive amount of fiber can cause abdominal cramps, gas, bloating." For risk of death though, you would need to consume an number of bananas that would be dangerous for you to have of any food.

Sources:

https://www.eatthis.com/warning-sign-eating-too-many-bananas/

https://www.thehealthsite.com/fitness/diet/7-dangerous-side-effects-of-eating-too-many-bananas-922413/

https://www.health.harvard.edu/heart-health/fruit-of-the-month-bananas#:~:text=Among%20all%20fruits%2C%20bananas%20are,few%20Americans%20meet%20this%20goal.

Answer 7

Eating too many bananas is unlikely to be fatal, but consuming an excessive amount could lead to health issues. Bananas are rich in potassium, which is essential for heart, muscle, and nerve function. However, too much potassium can cause hyperkalemia, a condition that may lead to heart problems. For a healthy person, it would require consuming an impractically large number of bananas in a short period to reach dangerous potassium levels. According to Cosmos Magazine, estimates suggest that ingesting around 42 bananas in one day could potentially lead to health risks. This would make consuming bananas to a point it would kill you to be extremely difficuly, so enjoying bananas in normal moderation as part of a balanced diet is safe and beneficial.

Source:

- https://cosmosmagazine.com/health/nutrition/can-bananas-kill-you/?

- https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/health/nutrition/health-benefits-bananas

Answer 8

Eating a lot of bananas probably won't kill you, but eating too many can cause health problems. Bananas have a lot of potassium, which is important for the heart, muscles, and nerves to work properly. But getting too much potassium can cause hyperkalemia, a condition that might lead to heart issues. A healthy person would need to eat a really huge amount of bananas quickly to get too much potassium. Cosmos Magazine says that eating about 42 bananas in one day might be bad for your health. This would make it very hard to eat so many bananas that it could kill you, so eating bananas in normal amounts as part of a healthy diet is safe and good for you.

https://cosmosmagazine.com/health/nutrition/can-bananas-kill-you/

https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-34225517#:~:text=But%20for%20a%20healthy%20person,heart%20to%20stop%20beating...

Answer 9

The article's information does seem to be mostly correct, detailing the potential theoretical side effects of eating too many bananas, including "uncomfortable fullness and digestive discomfort." However, the sheer number of bananas you would have to consume to experience any serious medical consequences is so ridiculously large that it is extremely unlikely the average person is at significant risk. Snopes calculated that one would have to eat 42 bananas in a sitting to overdose on banana, a number "far beyond the unforced capabilities of most people." In fact, you could eat 11 bananas in one day and still be taking in slightly less potassium than is required for a healthy diet. While people with pre-existing medical conditions, such as kidney issues, could run into trouble, it isn't the banana that's the problem in that situation. Really, for the average person, the biggest risk from eating too many bananas is under-eating other foods, because bananas don't have all the nutrients needed for a healthy diet. Thus, while not exactly false, the article certainly over-exaggerates the danger here. 

https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/banana-bloat/

Answer 10

The headline of this claim is widely misleading and exaggerated as it could be argued that eating too much of anything could lead to 'overdose' and death. The article itself mainly talks about the digestive issues that could occur if someone were to eat too many bananas nothing about death. 

https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-34225517#:~:text=But%20for%20a%20healthy%20person,%2C%20very%20good%20for%20you.%22