Nightshade Free Support Thread page 13

[leanzorik]

Sorry - I didn't see this post until now. Things to avoid for sure: tomatoes, potatoes, peppers of any kind, tomatillos, and eggplant, Peppers can be hidden in all kinds of things - you'll frequently find paprika in mustard, pickles, sausages, and all kinds of sauces. Sweet potatoes, black pepper, and white pepper are okay.

There is also some solanine in a few other foods that are not nightshades - apples, blueberries, arthichokes, and cucumber (I think), but the levels are much lower. It may be worth avoiding those during your trial and then testing them individually.

Good luck!

How come Sweet potatoes are okay to eat? Aren't they in the potato family? LOL
Btw, I am glad they are okay to eat. Coz I enjoy them after my weight lifting workouts

[activia]

Hmm I dont have join pain, or auto immune response.. however my stomach hurts for a bit if I eat certain nightshades for sure, like tomatoes, and eggplants, and sometimes tomato sauce. I'm still experimenting with others. I'm thinking this is a good reason to give them up, or at least the ones that seem to bother me.

My stomach also feels "notty" if I eat white rice. Has anyone else had a similiar experience?

[namelesswonder]

I'm going to read through this thread today, but first my intro: I've had constant post nasal drip and minor sinus congestion for the past several months at least. I thought it was just extended seasonal allergies at first, but it seems unlikely that's what it would be at this point (constant freezing temperatures). I don't have any noticeably digestive issues from nightshades, but my doctor recommended an elimination diet. The diet is essentially paleo (so no dairy), minus eggs, citrus, and tomatoes. The doctor did not mention cutting out anything else in the nightshade family, probably because I don't often eat those things (potatoes, eggplant etc.). I think it is likely that I have more of a dairy intolerance than I previously thought, but I don't think I have any problems with eggs (I was eating them everyday for months and felt great aside from the sinus issues).

It should not be too much of a change to go primal to restricted paleo for a month (starting January 1st), but I'm having a hard time even staying primal lately! This is a bad time of year for temptation

[Ingvildr]

Ugg, allergies...the diet you can't cheat on. For me it is sunflower seeds(followed by an epipen). My husband and daughter are both sensitive to peppers, my husbands mouth feels blistered even after tiny amounts and my daughter gets a stomachache and vomits after eating them. My stomach gets bombed(wicked heartburn) by cooked tomato and has since I was a little kid, peppers will also bomb my stomach. I haven't noticed anything joint related after eating nightshades, but I am getting old enough that joint aches are part of the background noise. I did notice that after I went primal that when I ate something with wheat in it and my joints ached enough that I had trouble getting to sleep. My son is allergic to corn and all corn derivatives so I've been cooking from scratch for awhile and I've always been a label reader due to everyone's allergies and diabetes. It would be nice to eat spontaneously and not have to examine everything first.

[jammies]

Hmm I dont have join pain, or auto immune response.. however my stomach hurts for a bit if I eat certain nightshades for sure, like tomatoes, and eggplants, and sometimes tomato sauce. I'm still experimenting with others. I'm thinking this is a good reason to give them up, or at least the ones that seem to bother me.

My stomach also feels "notty" if I eat white rice. Has anyone else had a similiar experience?

Yes, I suspect you should to a trial of no nightshades for a bit. If you are sensitive to one, there is a good chance you are sensitive to all . I am also sensitive to rice - although it's not nearly as bad as nightshades. Rice gives me heartburn. Rice does contain a potent lectin capable of binding in human tissues. Much of that lectin is removed in cooked white rice - but not all of it. So that could be what you are reacting to.

[jammies]

How come Sweet potatoes are okay to eat? Aren't they in the potato family? LOL
Btw, I am glad they are okay to eat. Coz I enjoy them after my weight lifting workouts

Sweet potatoes are not actually related to potatoes (I think they are in the same family as morning glory). They do not contain solanine, which is the glycoalkyloid that causes problems for many people in nightshades.

[Alainneire]

Great thread FairyRae!
i will be following with interest.....

[activia]

Yes, I suspect you should to a trial of no nightshades for a bit. If you are sensitive to one, there is a good chance you are sensitive to all . I am also sensitive to rice - although it's not nearly as bad as nightshades. Rice gives me heartburn. Rice does contain a potent lectin capable of binding in human tissues. Much of that lectin is removed in cooked white rice - but not all of it. So that could be what you are reacting to.

I was afraid of that. It only happens if I eat a LOT of rice (1 cup measured uncooked) If I have 1/4 cup (measured cooked) I dont seem to have a problem. I do soak my white rice the night before as well. I had brown rice (again it was a HUGE portion) a couple of times and this left me gassy and very uncomfortable. So I think I'm going to do a combo of sweet potatoes with a small amount of white rice my next lifting workout carb load. Once I did my carb load with primarily white potatoes and I felt flu-like (although I did eat a lot and it was almost all I ate and I usually eat low carb)

I have noticed that sometimes I'm OK with tomato sauce (again if I have a smaller amount) and other times I'm not. I'm still iffy on the eggplant thing once I felt someting once I didn't, I'm wondering if that one time I felt off was because I hate tomato sauce with it cleary not the way to go for me... I already don't eat peppers as I don't like them. Cooked onions are no bother to me. The thing is I definitley have a pollen allergy which causes issues with me with some fruit (Melon/peaches/plums are the biggest culprit) or apples if they are really old. Also if strawberries are cut and left out for any amount of time. So I think the tomato thing could also be related to this allergy as well.

I've also always stayed away from things like cayenne pepper/paprika as I don't like spicy things hmmmmmmmmm. Maybe there is a reason why my taste buds are not adapted. Gosh after writing this I'm pretty sure I am nightshade SENSITIVE. So much for my Italian blood.. I have been pretty much night shade free. I only have egg plant once in awhile and stay away from tomatoes most of the time, I have a bit of tomato sauce (its getting less and less) a few times a month. I never have peppers or white potatoes (after that one experiment). I guess there is no reason to force the taste issue on peppers for me..haha

I guess eating a lot of one thing can magnify a problem enough for you to realize you have one. I previously had no ill effects when eating rice/bread etc that I never noticed. But lately when I really pay attention if I do "cheat" ...stupid me didnt realized the mushrooms at the restuarant were stuffed with..STUFFING.. I do notice my stomach gets knotty for about 10-15 mins. Also explains why a scoop of plain ice cream doesnt seem to bother me but a brownie make me feel very sick, or why ice cream that has other "stuff" in it.. does bother me (especially after exercising). Its very interesting how sensitive I am now, or how oblivious I was before.

Speaking of mushrooms..once I had a grilled large portebello mushroom (it was a bit old) and I felt terribly sick after for a few hours! After that I hadnt had mushrooms again for awhile, since I've had a couple of small portebello mushrooms here and there and been OK, any ideas?? Iv'e had a couple of large grilled ones in the past with no ill effects (that I remember anyways).

I don't think I need to be 100% off as small portions of night shades (except maybe raw old tomatoes) seem to not effect me.

[BestBetter]

Just wanted to point out something to look out for, if you are sensitive to very small amounts of nightshades.

You should avoid anything with "FOOD STARCH" as an ingredient, because the source of the starch could be POTATO.

If you're cooking all your own food from scratch, it shouldn't be a problem, but anything packaged you have to go over with a fine-toothed comb. My husband tried avoiding nightshades last spring to see if it made a difference for his psoriatic arthritis (it didn't seem to be connected, but now we're contemplating doing another elimination period to confirm), and we did some extensive research about all the hidden sources of nightshades.

[onalark]

Nice thread. I started an elimination diet three days ago. I've been avoiding it, but my sinuses have gotten worse this month, and I'm really curious to see if this helps me.

For anyone who has successfully eliminated nightshades (and dairy and eggs) -- at what point did you start to notice a change in symptoms? Days? Weeks? I'm curious. So far I don't notice anything, and I'm somewhat resigned to always having allergies.