Is Walnut Wood Toxic? Super Important Health Info

Walnut wood is super popular. It has a nice texture, a dark color that can’t be beaten, it’s hard and there are many other benefits that make woodworkers love it.
However, working with wood is not without its dangers. The most well-known danger is sawdust. Another danger that people are often less aware of is that wood can also be toxic. This is very important when creating items that come into contact with food. So, is walnut wood toxic?

Due to the presence of juglone, walnut wood is poisonous. The greatest concentration of juglone is present in the roots, but also in the wood, sufficient juglone is present to cause both short-term (throat and lung irritations) and long-term (chronic poisoning) effects.

I’ll answer the topic “is walnut wood toxic” in this article so that you, as a woodworker, are aware of the black walnut toxicity to humans.

This way, you’ll be able to correctly analyze the dangers of this wood and what you can do to avoid juglone invading your body. Before you begin working with walnut wood, be sure to read this article about walnut toxicity.

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Walnut wood characteristics

Walnut comes in a wide range of varieties that can be utilized in woodworking. The black walnut, or juglans nigra, is the most often used species. Other species used in woodworking include the butternut (Juglans regia), and the English walnut, sometimes known as white walnut (Juglans cinerea).

Black walnut is a strong, durable, and fine-grained wood that is dark, hard, and dense. It’s a sort of wood that resists warping and isn’t easily affected by shrinking. The grain is variable, but usually straight, with a medium texture. The end grain has visible growth rings and is semi-porous.

Walnut is a wood species that is susceptible to insects but, thanks to its hardness, quite resistant to spoilage. When Walnut wood is processed by sawing or milling, a typical scent is released that is very recognizable. Once the wood is finished, walnut feels soft and smooth and gives your project a unique and natural dark look.
(Source pictures: wood database)

What is walnut wood used for

Black walnut wood is valued by woodworkers for its strength, grain, and color. That is why this type of wood is often used for furniture, musical instruments, carvings, decorations, and veneers. The big advantage of walnut is that this type of wood can be polished to a smooth finish. The color of walnut can vary, with the sapwood (or the outer layer of the wood) being a creamy white color, and the heartwood (the inner part of the wood) being a dark chocolate-like color.

The longer the time elapses after finishing natural walnut wood, the more this wood develops a glossy patina. The condition is, of course, that you give it the necessary care. As a dark brown wood, it is popular among dedicated woodworkers and lovers of fine furniture. That is why walnut is often used in luxury products such as luxury cabinets, natural wood floors, boat building, and more.

Whatever you produce with walnut will have a distinctively warm appearance that, thanks to the high quality of the wood, will last a long time. I’ve listed a few more features in the table below that may be useful if you want to start working with walnut wood yourself.
PS: To learn more about what Janka hardness is, check out my in-depth article, What Is Janka Rating And Is It Still Relevant?

	Black walnut	Butternut	English walnut
Scientific Name	Juglans nigra	Juglans cinerea	Juglans regia
Average Dried Weight	38 lbs/ft3 (610 kg/m3)	27 lbs/ft3 (435 kg/m3)	40 lbs/ft3 (640 kg/m3)
Janka Hardness	1,010 lbf (4,490 N)	490 lbf (2,180 N)	1,220 lbf (5,410 N)
Shrinkage	Radial: 5.5%, Tangential: 7.8%, Volumetric: 12.8%, T/R Ratio: 1.4	Radial: 3.4%, Tangential: 6.4%, Volumetric: 10.6%, T/R Ratio: 1.9	Radial: 5.5%, Tangential: 7.5%, Volumetric: 13.0%, T/R Ratio: 1.4

Advantages and disadvantages of walnut wood

As with any type of wood, walnut has a few advantages and disadvantages. In the lists below, I go over the most important. Because of these pros and cons, you as a woodworker can decide whether this wood is suitable for your project or not.

Advantages of walnut wood

• Environmental & Eco-Friendly: growing walnut wood causes no damage to air, soil, water, animals etc. unless pesticides have been used.
• Attractive wood grain: Texture and dyeing in grain are very individual and lively.
• Durable Wood: Walnut wood is very durable, and its lifespan is up to 150-400 years.
• Highly resistant to wear and tear: This type of wood is also resistant to mold and water.
• Stains and polishes well: If the user is very much experienced, then the installation process of walnut wood items are quite easy as compared to other woods.
• Walnut wood is pretty water resistant, you can discover more about that in my in-depth article, is walnut wood water resistant. Be sure to read that article, because that knowledge can make or break your project.

Disadvantages of walnut wood

• Walnut toxicity: working with walnut can cause chronic poisoning in the long run.
• Cost: walnut wood is pretty expensive as compared to other woods like oak wood. Please check my in-dept article “Why is walnut wood so expensive“.
• Scratches: This wood can easily get damaged or scratched by a knife or with other sharp items.
• Difficult To Install: for beginner users, walnut wood installation will be more difficult because it can easily be damaged by scratches.
• Maintenance: The user needs to apply a new layer of finish on the surface of walnut wood after a few years of its usage.
• Weight: The weight of walnut wood is pretty heavy, and it is not easy to handle and transport.

Is walnut wood toxic? The details you need to know as a woodworker!

As beautiful as the wood is, unfortunately, walnut is toxic in some respects, but you could already read that in the intro to this article. In this part, I’ll take a closer look at walnut toxicity and how you can protect yourself against it.

What part of black walnut is toxic

Juglone (5-hydroxyalphanapthaquinone) is a toxic substance produced by the roots of Black Walnut (Juglans nigra L.) and Butternut (Juglans cinerea L.). Other varieties of walnut trees, such as Persian (English or Carpathian) walnut trees, are occasionally grafted onto black walnut rootstocks, implying the presence of this toxic chemical.

The substance juglone, from which the scientific name juglans derives, can be so toxic to plants such as tomato, potato, blackberry, blueberry, apple, and many other plants that if planted nearby, they will be injured or killed.

This poisonous zone surrounding a mature tree can reach a radius of 50 to 60 feet (15 to 18 meters) from the trunk. However, Juglone is poorly soluble in water and does not move very far in the soil.

Walnut pollen (typically in May) can induce allergic reactions in both humans and animals (especially horses). Walnut-induced allergic reactions can range in severity from mild oral allergy syndrome (itching in the mouth and/or tongue) to severe and even fatal systemic reactions (anaphylactic shock, hives, and swelling of the throat, asthma)

The toxin juglone is found in walnut leaves, bark, and wood, albeit at lower concentrations than in the roots.
The leaves and bark will not be a problem for us as woodworkers, because we will never be in contact with them. As a result, the woods pose the greatest threat. Below, I’ll go over this in greater depth.

Coming into contact with walnut wood is not a danger in itself. The greatest danger is when the juglone is absorbed into the body. For humans, walnut toxicity can immediately result in discomfort, but some animal species, such as horses, are very sensitive to this. So if you have horses, never mix walnut chips or walnut sawdust with the bedding in their stables.

Is walnut dust toxic

As you could read earlier, the chemical found in walnut is called juglone. It is most present in the roots of the tree and in some fewer proportions in the wood. Also, the moisture level of the wood plays a huge role in the quantity of the juglone.

This substance is present in a higher concentration in wet wood. Therefore, never cut walnut wood that is not sufficiently dried out. When cutting wood, no matter what type of wood, dust is released and is always carcinogenic!

When cutting walnut wood, sawdust is released, which contains the toxic substance juglone. This walnut sawdust will dry out the sinus, throat and gives you a very dry cough. Continued intake of walnut sawdust will increase the juglone level in your body, resulting in chronic poisoning.

In any case, when sawing wood, it is strongly advised to always use a dust mask. Walnut sawdust is considered a “sensitizer.” This means that you may not have an instant reaction, but you may build one over time if you continue to be exposed.

The reaction can’t be reversed once your body has become sensitive, and it gets worse over time.
In addition to wearing a mouth mask, I recommend washing dusty clothing as soon as possible after a day of working with walnuts to avoid the walnut sawdust being absorbed by the body.

Is walnut wood food safe

Videos and pictures of people constructing cutting boards, wooden spoons, and a variety of other kitchen items abound on the internet.

Some people are going to do this with walnut wood as well. And somehow I understand, because it’s a lovely wood that adds a splash of color to your project. However, keep in mind that walnut wood is toxic.

Due to the presence of toxic juglone in the walnut wood, I would never recommend making objects that come into contact with food. There is a chance that the food will absorb the juglone, resulting in chronic poisoning.

To make wooden objects that come into contact with food, I would rather recommend woods such as maple or beech. Above all, remember that walnut is not food safe. To get inspired with a list of food save woods, check out my article, what kind of wood is food safe.

By the way, if you want to glue wooden parts that come into contact with food, you don’t just use any glue. Earlier I wrote the article: “Is super glue food safe”, there you can find all information about the food-safe gluing of wood.

Recommended article: Walnut vs Oak, a quick guide to help you choose