Discover the terrifying story of a family decimated by rotten potatoes. These are silent killers you won’t suspect in your kitchen!
The potato is one of the most consumed foods in the world and has many benefits.
Unfortunately, it presents risks, one of which is particularly deadly.
NB: No image of a rotten potato is displayed here. You may read this article in front of the children .
The Little-Known Danger of Rotten Potatoes – They Release a Deadly Gas That Kills in Minutes!
Can rotten potatoes kill you?
The rotten potato emits a deadly solaline gas that can render its victim unconscious and kill them within minutes.
What are the effects of rotten potato solaline gas?
In common cases, the gas emitted by rotten potatoes is very nauseating and can cause neurological and gastric disorders.
These range from nausea, dizziness and headaches to more serious disorders such as hallucinations, paralysis and even death.
How do you know if a potato is rotten?
Rotten potatoes can be soft or watery, have green spots on the surface of the flesh, or be sprouted. It is advisable to discard the whole potato rather than cutting off the damaged part.
Generally, a firm potato is good to eat. If you find that part of it has sprouted, you can (sometimes) just cut it off and throw it away. But avoid those that have sprouted all over.
Can you eat a sprouted potato?
It all depends on the degree of germination; if it’s just a tiny sprout, it might be enough to cut it off. If the sprout is advanced or covers the entire surface of the potato, it would be better to bury it in your garden.
The Little-Known Danger of Rotten Potatoes: A Deadly Gas That Kills in Minutes!
The Horrific Story of a Family Wiped Out by Rotten Potatoes
To begin with, nothing is better than a tragedy to awaken awareness. This happened in 2013 in a Russian family.
A family used to stockpile potatoes during the summer for the winter. One day, the father went to the storage depot to get the few potatoes the family needed. He never returned.
After a long time, his worried wife went to the warehouse to find her husband in the pitch darkness. She never returned.
Thus, all the members of the family, including the children, went, never to return. Only the grandmother had asked for help before meeting the same tragic end as her family.
Before help arrived, the youngest, 8-year-old, went looking for her parents and lay dying in front of the entrance to the potato storage depot.
What really happened?
The potato stored for the winter has rotted. In this state, the tuber releases a deadly gas that can kill almost instantly any living thing that breathes it. The members of this family of five, including an 8-year-old girl, were victims of this gas.
The 8-year-old girl survived the horror thanks to her grandmother, who left the warehouse entrance door open. The effects of the gas emitted by the rotten potatoes had diminished, according to police.
The little girl woke up and was orphaned. Neighbors and family friends are currently taking care of her.
The Little-Known Danger of Rotten Potatoes
Potatoes contain toxic components known as glycoalkaloids. When consumed above a certain threshold (3 mg would have been enough), the individual can experience various types of disorders and even death.
These types of components are very common in plants and vegetables such as tomatoes, eggplants and peppers.
The most prevalent in potatoes are solanine and chaconine.
Solanine is also found in deadly toxic plants such as those used to make tobacco. This toxin typically attacks the nervous system, causing confusion, weakness, headaches, coma, and even death.
High concentrations of solanine are often found in leaves, stems, shoots and even fruits.
The concentration of glycoalkaloids increases considerably if the fruit or vegetable is exposed to light, ages, rots, or begins to sprout.
A large amount of this toxin is found under the skin of potatoes and certain fruits.
In the case of potatoes, when they rot, the level of glycoalkaloid is so high that it releases a very toxic gas that can instantly kill victims who breathe it in.
How to treat potatoes and avoid poisoning?
Plants naturally contain a certain amount of glycoalkaloid that grows under the same conditions mentioned in the previous section.
The reason why people rarely get sick after eating these vegetables lies in the way they are prepared and cooked. Potatoes are no exception.
To store and consume potatoes without risk of poisoning, you must follow the advice of an expert from passeportsante.net:
- Store the potato away from light, in a well-ventilated, dry place. This helps reduce the formation of glycoalkaloids.
- Cut off and discard any parts of the potato that are green, sprouting, or rotting. If the entire potato is affected by any of these things, discard it without mercy.
- The sprouts, as well as the flesh around the head of the apple, are not edible.
- It has been seen that glycoalkaloids are most concentrated under the skin of the potato. It is therefore important to peel it to reduce the concentration of the toxin.
- If you like to eat raw potatoes, you should stop immediately if they taste bitter or you feel a burning sensation in your mouth.
Source :
- https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2409920/Russian-girl-8–orphaned-ENTIRE-family-wiped-deadly-gas-caused-rotting-potatoes-cellar.html
- https://www.passeportsante.net/fr/Communaute/ReponsesExpert/Question/solanine-et-pomme-de-terre-16445
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