Mortal poison: Understanding Snake Venom and How It Works

Shortly afterwards, English physician Richard Mead (1673-1754) went one step further and personally drank, without ill effect, viper venom to show that it must be injected into the body to cause harm. The study of venom has progressed so that we now have a detailed understanding of what’s in venom and how the constituent toxins work. The major ways that venom can be a “mortal poison” are explained below.