In addition, the long-term negative effects of exposure to sawdust of any species are well documented.
It is important to remember that although many people may, or may not, be sensitive to any given wood the only experience that truly counts is your own, so use reported side effects as guidance but not as a substitute for cautious and safe practices. After all, despite a lack of reported major health effects, turning a bowl blank of Timborana almost killed me through immediate respiratory distress followed by a multiple week long illness, so caution is ALWAYS warranted.
Appropriate protective equipment is therefore always recommended when working with this, or any other, wood, exotic or domestic, unless you have worked with the species before and are certain you are not sensitive to it.
But also bear in mind that many of the negative health effects, although certainly not all of them, are associated with high volume contact among industrial users working in mills and other processing facilities where the amount of contact with dust and wood is much higher than would ever be realistic for a hobbyist user.
Complete information about health hazards associated with a wide variety of exotic hardwoods is available from The Wood Database. Additional information about how to best use a dust collection system and personal protective equipment, such as respirators, can also be found through this excellent and comprehensive resource.
Unfortunately, I did not have a pleasant initial experience working with Monkeypod. From the first cut of the blank I could distinctly sense discomfort with breathing as a sharp scent filled my nostrils and sinuses, but not a smell so much as a sharp discomfort. From experience, I recognized this as a potential sensitivity and immediately donned my N-95 dust mask (which I am aware I should have been wearing regardless, just as I do with my safely glasses) and I was especially careful to wear it during sanding. However, despite this precaution I developed a low grade fever that night of about 100 degrees, significant sinus congestion and a generally unwell feeling that caused me to sleep most of the next day. When I proceeded to finish the bowl I was careful to use the dust mask the entire time and I experienced much less discomfort and no lingering problems the following day.
I realize it could all be a coincidence but after the experience with Timborana I am taking few to no chances with potential wood allergies. Just because a negative reaction hasn’t been officially reported and documented somewhere doesn’t mean you can’t experience one all the same.
My Personal Experiences
The first thing I noticed about my rather small bowl blank of Monkeypod was that it was quite lightweight. This concerned me because low density woods are sometimes difficult to turn because they do not take a fine cut surface. I was however encouraged by the presence of a band of light colored sapwood that I very much wanted to be able to retain in the finished piece.
The wood was very soft and on the cross grain areas the cut was abysmal. Rarely have I seen a wood cut so rough, even with a freshly sharpened bowl gouge or with the use of carbide cutter heads. For the most part the wood looked grossly gouged out, a degree of tear out such as I have rarely ever seen. But, on the areas where the cut was with the grain the finish cut was quite smooth, so I knew it wasn’t tools or technique that was the problem.
I thought that perhaps, given the state of the mold on the exterior of the blank, that some degree of rot was present, but again, the tearing was limited to cross grain areas so I couldn’t believe that it was a systemic problem with the wood either.