Guam Diet: Fadang

The native Guamanians use fadang, the seed of the false sago palm (a cycad), as an ingredient in their traditional medicine and food. According to Marjorie Whiting, a nutritionist/anthropologist who lived with the native Guamanians, "Cycad seeds could cause the Guam diseases. Everybody knows that the fadang is toxic. The people go to a lot of trouble to process it in order to detoxify it."

Figure: Cycas macrocarpa

Cycads have been a source of food and medicine for many people who live in proximity to these plants. These plants are well-known to be highly poisonous and must be carefully processed to remove toxins, before they are edible. If they are not properly processed they can cause vomiting, liver damage and even death. There is also evidence they have neurotoxic effects. To remove the toxins, different methods of processing are used by different cultures.