Poisonous bits in spuds – fact or myth?
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Question by Phil McCracken: Poisonous bits in spuds – fact or myth?
I have heard a few people claim that eating green bits of discoloured potatoes is dangerous, that these bits are poisonous. I can’t say I have ever heard of anyone anywhere ever being hospitalised after eating a bit of green tatty. So id it a fact or an urban myth?
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14 Responses to Poisonous bits in spuds – fact or myth?
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MYTH.
Sugar PIe
August 4, 2013 at 6:54 am
I ate a green crisp once and I’m still here.
Jenny
August 4, 2013 at 7:42 am
Yes Ive heard that too,so when i peel spuds if there’s any green bits on i cut them off or just throw out the spud..don’t really know if its true though.. OMG i could have wasted a lot of spuds in my time oh well..
debs
August 4, 2013 at 8:05 am
It’s true. The poison is known as glycoalkoloids. The concentrations are usually too low in greening potatoes. It reaches hazardous levels when it’s a plant, that’s why you shouldn’t eat potato leaves.
Equinox
August 4, 2013 at 8:47 am
lol i’ve got a bag full of them in my kitchen i’ll be roasting them up on sunday you can come if you want roast chicken .green spuds , broccoli ,mixed veg stuffing gravy and yorkshire pud lush x
bex - jungle babe
August 4, 2013 at 9:19 am
I have peeled and eaten a few emeralds in my time..even eaten the ones with little ‘sprouts’ coming out of them. I know that spuds are producing their own type of hormones when they are ‘breeding’…but l have eaten them..well boiled of course..and never suffered a second.
Jo B
August 4, 2013 at 9:36 am
myth defo – eat it – itll only help ur immune system….. some peeps are such scaredy cats
Hot Pink
August 4, 2013 at 10:01 am
I believe it is due to the potatoes (when still in plant stage) not being “Earthed Up” enough – this is where the soil is piled up either side of the plant. If the tubers (or potatoes) are too close to the surface they turn green. The green is poisonous, but you would have to eat “a lot” of green potatoes for it to have any effect.
HTH
righttone
August 4, 2013 at 10:45 am
do you really think that mcdonalds pays someone to make sure there are no deadly green spots in their fries? and how many people do you know that have been poisoned by them?
Donra2
August 4, 2013 at 10:56 am
DO NOT eat green potatoes they are full of toxins and although you will not die why make yourself ill?
Terry G
August 4, 2013 at 11:17 am
You need to eat so much of the green potatoes to do any harm but it is true.This green coloration (“greening” also called “sun-burning”) can be as much as a half-inch deep in severe cases. Associated with greening is the formation of a natural chemical that can cause allergic reactions and illness.
Bob
August 4, 2013 at 11:43 am
it is a fact just like the fruit on the spud being poisonous , do you want to try eating the green bits to find out?
viva zapata
August 4, 2013 at 12:14 pm
They are poisonous – you’d have to eat quite a lot to become ill though – it’s not advised for pregnant women or very young children. Just cutting off the green bits doesn’t make the affected potato safe though – the whole potato is affected.
bec
August 4, 2013 at 12:55 pm
potatoes are a member of the same family as deadly nightshade (solanacea if my memory serves me right).
All the info about not eating the leaves or fruit is correct, I also believe that the toxin level increases in daylight.
The modern cultivated potato rarely reaches a level of toxicity that is dangerous, although in certain circumstances it could be enough to make you ill.
I seem to recall reading somewhere that the original natives used to eat potatoes with clay to line their stomachs (the “wild” form holding more toxin)
EDIT Dr. Douglas L. Holt, the State Extension Specialist for Food Safety at the University of Missouri – Columbia, notes that no reported cases of potato-source solanine poisoning have occurred in the U.S. in the last 50 years and most cases involved eating green potatoes or drinking potato-leaf tea.
wrythought
August 4, 2013 at 1:01 pm