Foxglove, scientifically known as Digitalis, is a distinctive flowering plant renowned for its elegant, tubular blossoms and rich history in herbal medicine. Native to Europe and Asia, it has become a beloved garden favourite worldwide. Its tall spikes decked with pendulous, trumpet-shaped flowers in various shades of pink, purple, and white add a touch of enchantment to any garden. However, Foxglove’s allure is not only aesthetic – it contains potent compounds, like digoxin, a type of cardiac glycoside that has a powerful effect on the heart.

There are many popular saying about foxglove, including that one that talks about the flower giving a person a heart attack.

But is that true? Here’s what expert say.

“Foxgloves contain extremely potent compounds called cardiac glycosides – ‘cardiac’ for their function on the heart muscle and ‘glycosides’ to indicate that these compounds have sugar molecules… to help the body absorb them,” Dr Zhen Wang told Live Science.

A healthy heart pumps blood across the body through thousands of cardiac cells that contract for the process to be completed.

The membranes of these cells have different ion channels and transporters, which permit charged particles like sodium, potassium and chloride, said the Live Science report. Movement of these ions generates electrical current and the sodium-potassium pump maintains the electrical balance.

“All foxglove species produce some amount of these cardiac glycosides, such as digoxin, and they bind very, very tightly to the sodium-potassium pump, inhibiting it so the transporter cannot pump those ions anymore,” said Dr Zheng Wang.

Deactivating this pump causes a cascade of chemical problems within the cardiac cells that combine to make the heart suddenly beat much harder and much faster.

This disruption in the heart’s natural rhythm, a dangerous type of arrhythmia known as ventricular fibrillation, can lead to sudden cardiac arrest and even death.

However, digoxin is also known for its valuable heart medication. “Digoxin is clinically prescribed for heart failure when other drugs have failed,” said Dr Wang said.

He also advised that if someone accidentally ingests any part of the plant, they should immediately go to a hospital.