Just before Passover: If the potato looks like this, it may cause poisoning
There are almost no people who do not like potatoes, but did you know that there are varieties that can cause poisoning?
Such a case reported over 40 years ago raises the dangers inherent in the potato
Walla!
health
11/04/2022
Monday, 11 April 2022, 06:07 Updated: 07:23
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Passover is considered the Feast of Unleavened Bread, but in practice it can also completely pass as the Feast of Potatoes - an ingredient that stars throughout the holiday.
But a pretty amazing story that took place over 40 years ago, is a warning sign for all potato lovers, and you really should read it.
In 1979 a mistake by a catering company led to 78 schoolchildren being poisoned by potatoes.
After returning to school in south London after a holiday, a large number of boys suddenly became ill and began to suffer from symptoms ranging from vomiting and diarrhea, to fever, and even coma and nervous system problems, in the most severe cases, the iflscience website reports.
The cause of the disease was quickly identified: everyone had eaten potatoes cooked about 14 hours earlier.
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To the full article
"These boys also showed signs of peripheral circulatory collapse, even when dehydration was only mild," the doctors wrote in a BMJ case report published that year.
The symptoms lasted for six days.
A common ingredient in the Western diet.
Potatoes (Photo: ShutterStock, Anastasia Kamysheva)
"Potatoes are such a common ingredient in the Western diet that most people are surprised to find that they are the product of a poisonous plant," the team wrote.
The authors of the report cited other cases, including of a man who was poisoned after deciding to use the leaves and seeds of potatoes as a vegetable on his own.
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But the main danger stems from eating green potatoes, which have just come out of the ground.
The website of the Israeli Ministry of Health states under the heading "Avoid eating green potatoes" that green potatoes or with green spots may contain high levels of glycoalkaloids (Solanine and Chaconine) which are natural toxins.
Potatoes naturally contain these toxins in very low concentrations.
Potatoes exposed to light, moisture and heat may contain high levels of toxins
. Loss of sensitivity and hallucinations.
In extreme cases, a very high level of 3-6 mg per kg of body weight can cause death. "
"Fortunately, few people cook green or sprouted potatoes because of their appearance and their bitter and unpleasant taste, so in practice solanine poisoning is very rare, except during periods of food shortage," the report's editors wrote.
health
Nutrition and diet
Preventive nutrition
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Potatoes
diet
poisoning
vegetables