Curious about nightshade vegetables and their potential downsides? Discover what they are, why some people might avoid them, and explore tasty alternatives. Learn if these veggies could be affecting your health.
Nightshades are flowering plants that belong to theSolanaceaefamily. There are more than 2,700 species of them, ranging from crops to spices to weeds to medicinal herbs.
When you hear the wordnightshade, you might thinkdeadly. You wouldn’t be totally wrong.Atropa belladonna,deadly nightshade, is indeed the edgy goth black sheep of theSolanaceaeclan. But this family also contains wholesome, beloved vegetables like peppers, eggplants, and eventhe mighty potato.
Here’s everything you need to know about nightshade vegetables, including who should avoid them and what alternatives reign supreme.
Types of nightshade vegetables
There’s a huge amount of variety amongnightshades, particularly those that grow in South and Central America. Some of the most commonly eaten in the U.S. include:
That’s an impressive assortment! It doesn’t even include nightshades like tobacco andDatura, which aren’t eaten but still get ingested or used medicinally.
Alkaloids in nightshades
Alkaloids are organic compounds with medicinal and psychoactive properties. Morphine, codeine, caffeine, mescaline, and cocaine are all derived from alkaloid-rich plants. Nightshades contain alkaloids including solanine, capsaicin, and nicotine.
Keep in mind, the exact alkaloid levels are dependent on the plant.
Solanine. This alkaloid shows up in particularly high quantities in potatoes. It’s used intraditional medicine, but too much of it can be poisonous. Thankfully, you’d have to eat alotof unpeeled greenpotatoesto reach a harmful dose.
Capsaicin. This is the active ingredient in chilipeppers. It’s responsible for that delicious spiciness, but it’s technically classed as a neurotoxic irritant. We don’t need to spend ages exploring what too much spicy food might do to thedigestive system. If you know, you know.
Nicotine. Smoking nicotine has nothing to do with eatingvegetables. The nicotine in nightshades isn’t harmful and may actually have beneficial effects.
What are the health benefits of nightshade vegetables?
Scientists broadly accept that nightshades havemedicinal propertieswhich help them fight conditions like:
However, there’s still wide debate on how well your body absorbs the beneficial nutrients from some nightshades. Others are far safer bets in terms of getting the good stuff into your cells. Some of the most nutritious nightshades are:
Are nightshade vegetables bad for you?
As a family containing both deadly poisons and daily food staples, nightshades have a somewhat complex reputation. Everyday foods likepotatoesand peppers are scrutinized for negative health impacts, maybe unfairly when we look at the evidence.
Studies linking everyday nightshades to health problems are mostly either old, inconclusive, or oldandinconclusive. There is, however, a reasonable amount of anecdotal evidence worth hearing out.
For example, we spoke about calcitriol’s potential to flood the blood with too much calcium if you ingest too much. This has been linked toarthritiswhen calcium gathers around the joints, but no study has proved it.
Can nightshades worsen autoimmune disease?
The presence of so many nitrogen-rich alkaloids in nightshades has some questioning their impact on the immune system.
Somestudiesmention solanine, a glycoalkaloid found in tomatoes, eggplant, and potatoes. Solanine is suggested to increase intestinal permeability and may worsen arthritogenic conditions.
Anotherstudyfound that patients with psoriasis – an autoimmune disease – found theirpsoriasissymptoms improved after eliminating alcohol, gluten, nightshade plants, and other foods from their diet. This makes it hard to say if nightshades on their own are associated withpsoriasis.
Does inflammatory bowel disease get worse when you eat nightshades?
Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a growing issue around the world. Inflammation in the gut results in conditions like Crohn’s. There are questions about whether all those alkaloids in nightshades could make those conditions worse.
Severalelimination dietsthat are used to treat IBD include the avoidance of nightshades. But, we still don’t know if nightshades on their own will remedy all symptoms, or if other foods are to blame.
It’s safe to assume that spicy nightshades like chili peppers won’t help matters. But scientific evidence is rare, with few studies done on humans.
Can you be sensitive or allergic to nightshades?
Eight foods account for 90 percent of allfood allergies: cow’s milk, eggs, tree nuts, peanuts, shellfish, wheat, soy, and fish. So if you’re experiencing allergy symptoms and you’ve already ruled out those eight, it’s easy to get stuck.
Allergies to nightshades like eggplants and tomatoes are rare, but they’re not unheard of. Try dropping them from your diet for a while to see if it eases symptoms like:
Should you avoid eating nightshade vegetables?
Right now, the evidence doesn’t support any urgent need for us to ditch potatoes and tomatoes after thousands of years. Not en masse, at least. In fact, lots of nightshadevegetablesare associated with some pretty dope health benefits.
If you feel like you’re sensitive to nightshades, try anelimination dietand find out for sure. Ditch the nightshades for 5-6 weeks before reintroducing them into your diet, one at a time every week. If your symptoms reappear, you’ve likely found your culprit.
PSA: Talk to a healthcare provider or registered dietician for guidancebeforeyou start an elimination diet. They can also help make the reintroduction phase a lot easier.
Substitutes for nightshade vegetables
Swapping nightshades out of your diet means losing out on some easy sources of vitamins and dietary fiber. But it’s a big world, there’s a lot of food out there. Consider alternatives like:
They’ve got an emo name and it’s hard to describe them in a few words, but nightshades are enjoyed worldwide. There’s no reason most people can’t aspire to eat more fresh vegetables, just because they’re distant second cousins of tobacco.
But of course, we can’t make any sweeping generalizations. Nobody knows your body better than you do. And if you don’t want to eat something, don’t eat it. More potatoes for the rest of us!
