Like most things to do with food and health, I normally do the deeper research on them because my partner has a tendency to over indulge. I've always heard that anything in moderation is okay, obviously I restrict my diet so this isn't strictly true but even with in the stuff that is healthy to eat 'plant based food' its still necessary to take caution. Plants are a chemical make up of different nutrients, vitamins and other biological stuff, some of these things if over dosed can cause sickness, and in some cases death.

It might seem a bit far fetched but when me and my partner picked around a 100 wild figs and they are said to be best eaten warm straight from the tree. I could see my partner gobbling away and then afterwards eating a ton of them when we got home, I'm going to estimate he had at the very least 50 in one sitting.

I was a bit like 'Woa there! your going to have a free flow on the toilet tomorrow, maybe you wanna hold back a little"

But he wouldn't stop.... so it was time to G O O G L E his ass.

Firstly he wasn't eating the skin which was probably to his advantage, because if you have ever picked figs from the tree, you will see the white sap oozing from the tip, it dribbled all over the skin and if not washed properly and the tip cut off, you could ingest large amounts of this substance called ficin, that causes a tingling sensation although it is already contained within smaller amounts inside the fig.

Figs can inhibit calcium absorption, caused by the phytates contained in them, _Unlike oxalic acid, the phytates in these foods also has the ability to inhibit the calcium absorption from the entire meal, not just the food containing the substance. Cooking helps decrease phytate levels, as does soaking, sprouting or fermenting the beans or grains prior to consumption._

They also contain high amounts of vitamin K, vitamin K helps the blood to clot, if you were taking blood thinning medication for some reason you would want to be cautious in over consuming it.

Figs lower the blood sugar level but this can be harmful if you are diabetic.

And one of the most dangerous side effects is that the tiny seeds inside the figs are not digested easily and can cause obstruction in the liver.

Figs and Anjeer (dried figs) in rare cases can cause bleeding In some cases, it can even result in hemolytic anemia. ( Anaemia caused by abnormal breakdown of red blood corpuscles). The best way to avoid the situation is to always eat figs in limited quantity. If you have eaten too many figs and are facing problems like rectal and vaginal bleeding, then stop eating figs immediately. If the bleeding continues,consult with your doctor.

Okay so Don't let this put you off eating Figs! I adore them, they are beautiful and tasty and also nutritious, full of soluble fiber. The recommended daily dose is between 3 -5 figs so enjoyed best in moderation!

But if you are Vegan this may or may not bother you! Some vegan genuinely don't eat Figs and here why.......

THERE WAS ONCE A WASP IN EVERY FIG YOU EAT THAT HAD TO LOOSE ITS LIFE FOR THE FIG TO POLLINATE

And by the way the FIG is not a fruit it's a FLOWER

WOW literally my mind was blown, I could not believe it was really true!

In fact they are actually an inverted flower....

So the fig blooms inside its pod. As you know, flowers need to be pollinated so that they can reproduce, but since a fig's flower is hidden inside itself, that means its pollinator — in this case, the fig wasp — needs to crawl inside the fig to bring the pollen directly to the flower. *

But you would never know that there was ever a wasp inside your Fig because the Ficin the wipe sap that oozes from the fig tip and is contained within the fig it self (which causes a tingling sensation when eating it) is a special enzyme that breaks the insects body down into proteins that get absorbed by the plant.

So as a vegan how do I feel about this process?

Well let look at the process a little more deeply figs are both male and female, it is the female fig that we eat and this is the one that the wasp dies in. The wasp chooses to burrow inside the figs to find a place to lay their eggs, as we know they are not successful within the female fig but if they burrow inside a male fig they can lay their eggs but they also die but her eggs hatch, with males hatching first (they are blind and flightless) and they mate with their female counterparts. The male wasps then burrow a tunnel out of the caprifig, and the females fly out, full of fertilized eggs and carrying pollen, starting the cycle anew. *

Though the wasp that died within the female fig was not successful at laying her eggs she does bring pollen into the internal flowers of the fig, pollinating it. After that, the figs quickly ripens *

• Watch a video on how wasps pollunate figs here

For me it seems like a natural part of the life cycle for the wasps and integral to the pollination of the flower, I do not see why I cannot enjoy the fig.

So what do you think about all this? Drop a comment below!

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Thanks for reading