Can i eat slightly green potatoes

Solanine is a natural pesticide, and the potato plant's defense system. It's exclusively found in the nightshade species and Solanum genus, including eggplant, tomatoes, tobacco, and you guessed it, potatoes. Solanine generally triggers gastrointestinal and neurological distress, such as diarrhea, vomiting, stomach cramps, nausea, headaches, and dizziness.

However, as Science Direct notes , more severe cases of solanine poisoning can cause hypothermia, paralysis, hallucinations, jaundice, and even loss of sensation. Eating a green potato is unlikely to kill you, but it's best to avoid them. If your potato only has a few green spots you may be able to salvage them. You can try peeling off the skin or cutting off the green parts, but if they still taste bitter, get rid of them. Potatoes won't turn green as long as they're stored properly and kept away from the light.

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Mum's lifelong struggles suddenly made sense when son received ADHD diagnosis. Here's their economic logic. Online Information Centre. Is this page useful? Yes No. How can we improve this website? Facebook Twitter. Main Menu. If, writes author Alexander Pavlista, those potatoes had been exposed to light, which can easily increase solanine concentrations by 10, that same person could suffer to some degree after eating two pounds of potatoes.

For perspective, a large baked potato can weigh about a pound. Nora Olsen, potato specialist for the University of Idaho, has studied solanine concentration in potatoes, but when she encounters a potato with a bit of green in her kitchen, her first worry is flavor, not sickening people. Also important: while cooked potatoes will stop producing solanine, cooking will not eliminate existing solanine. One more bit of good news: When it comes to solanine, Olsen says that the potato industry has your back.

The potatoes that are bred and distributed are typically selected for their tendency to produce low amounts of solanine. All information posted on this blog is thoroughly researched, but is provided for reference and entertainment purposes only. For medical advice, please consult a doctor. Please see our terms.