A word or two on nightshades.
Did you know that nicotine is an alkaloid substance in the tobacco plant, which happens to be a nightshade?
Nightshade vegetables are completely healthy for most people, but for a few it can act as a trigger similar to wheat or dairy and cause major immune reactions.
If you are a person that struggles with food sensitivities and allergies, autoimmune disease (in particular Rheumatoid Arthritis), inflammatory bowel disease or leaky gut syndrome, then there is a chance that nightshades could be contributing to your health condition. They can drive inflammation.
Nightshade vegetable sensitivity reactions can include:
- irritable bowel disorders and other gastrointestinal issues
- heartburn
- nerve sensitisation
- joint pain
When it comes to each plant in the nightshade family, everyone’s body responds in a unique way, but for most people these vegetables are not an issue.
What Are Nightshades?
Nightshades belong to a group of plants with more than 2000 species. The most commonly eaten varieties include:
- Ashwagandha
- Chilli
- Eggplant
- Peppers (except peppercorn)
- Potato (not yams or sweet potatoes)
- Tomatillo
- Tomato
- Aubergines
Many nightshade vegetables contain lectins, which some believe to be anti-nutrients. However, when prepared properly, lectins do not have the same toxicity and do not create the inflammation and intestinal permeability that many claim. That being said, it does not mean that some people do not have an adverse reaction to lectins or need to remove them from their diet from time to time.
Those with atopic dermatitis or psoriasis have shown significant skin improvements when removing nightshades from their diet.
PERIMENOPAUSE LINK
Many females see a surge in histamine issues when they move through perimenopause and into menopause due to falling levels of oestrogen. The nightshades are high in histamine so there is often an improvement to all histamine like symptoms which are itching, running nose/eyes and gut pain.
If you struggle with these symptoms and have removed the more common triggers such as gluten, dairy, refined sugars and alcohol from your diet, and consume a lot of nightshades, you may benefit from a trial to see if eliminating them works. You will need to give nightshades 6-12 weeks of avoidance to have a true idea as they are hard to break down.
