Food is supposed to be nourishing and delicious, but sometimes it’s more dangerous than appetizing. These are 5 foods that, while delicious, can have some nasty side effects on your body.
Tomatoes
Tomatoes are a staple in most healthy foods, and for good reason; they’re an excellent source of biotin and vitamin C. You have to be careful when preparing this food, though, due to the toxins in the leaves and stems. This poison, called glycoalkaloid, has been shown to cause cramps, upset stomachs and severe anxiety. So feel free to keep adding tomatoes to your salads, just make sure you’ve removed every trace of the leaves.
Bitter Almonds
Most almonds are packed with vitamins, but bitter almonds, in their raw form, happen to also be packed with cyanide. While you’re fine eating raw almonds all you like, make sure your bitter almonds have gone through a specialized heat treatment first, or they’ll likely be your last meal.
Castor Oil
Castor oil is popular not only in food, but also as a moisturizing skincare ingredient. While most castor oil is perfectly safe thanks to selective breeding, the plant’s original form is filled with a poison called niacin. Before you purchase or ingest castor oil, make sure your vendor was following all the safety guidelines when growing their castor beans.
Ackee
This is especially important for those travelling overseas. Ackee is a sweet, tasty fruit when allowed to fully ripen, but in its unripened form contains a multitude of deadly toxins. The fruit is banned in the US in all but its canned form, but many countries still sell ackee, so make sure the fruit is completely ripe before you eat it.
Rhubarb
People who grow rhubarb at home, especially those who don’t do their research, are at a high risk of injury from this plant. While the stalk is perfectly safe to eat, and an excellent pie filling, the leaves are poisonous and may cause asphyxiation, seizures, kidney failures and, in worst case scenarios, death. For this reason, it’s extremely important to make sure that stalks are completely removed from stalks before ingesting rhubarb.
Eat Safely
Eating isn’t meant to be a dangerous activity where you risk death or injury, but it can be when food isn’t properly prepared. Be extra careful around these foods, and you should have no trouble eating healthily.
References
Alternet
Dolman Law
Michigan Medicine