Most folks are lucky enough to be able to enjoy nature’s many tasty and amazing fruits and vegetables. Some fruits and vegetables, however, are known to cause mild to severe discomfort in the people who are just trying to enjoy them.
For many people, nightshades prove to be pretty harmless. Unfortunately, for many of us, nightshades are not our friend. In fact, nightshades can pose quite the serious threat.
To better understand the downside of eating nightshades, let’s discuss what nightshade vegetables are, why they are bad, and how we can live a life where we don’t even miss them.
What the Heck are Nightshades?
Chances are that you have eaten chili peppers, bell peppers, eggplant, tomatoes, or potatoes. They are loaded with all types of helpful micronutrients and are a healthy option for most people.
But for some of us, the chemicals they contain can aggravate and wreak havoc on our systems. In addition to the already named offenders, other nightshades include:
Ashwagandha
Eggplant
Goji berries
Gooseberries
Paprika
Pimentos
Tomatillos
White potatoes
Fear not as our friend the sweet potato is still on the table if you are on an animal-based diet, along with his cousin, the yam.
What are these Dangerous Chemicals?
The chemicals in nightshades that tend to do this damage are lectins, saponins, and capsaicin. These bad boys tend to cause negative effects in many people.
For instance:
- Lectins, which are sometimes referred to as antinutrients, can increase intestinal permeability and affect the body’s ability to absorb other nutrients.
- Saponins, like lectins, can also contribute to a leaky gut and have even been known to trigger an immune response in the body.
- Capsaicin has been shown to cause irritation of mucosal tissues and membranes.
These chemicals will do their worst to amplify an autoimmune response. Those who suffer from autoimmune disease might experience some disastrous effects thanks to one of these chemicals. Due to this overstimulation, your antibodies may begin to mistake other proteins that are similar to your DNA sequences as the enemy. In short, this means eating nightshades may result in antibodies attacking your own tissues. Nightshades can also cause a number of symptoms such as inflammation.
Though nightshades do not contain large amounts of these crummy chemicals, it does not take much to do damage. You may be surprised to find that cutting nightshades out of your diet can reveal that you’ve been experiencing various allergies or even low-level poisoning. The stress and strain from lectins, saponins, and capsaicin will certainly have an effect on your quality of life.
If you feel nightshades are causing you problems, your doctor will likely advise that you avoid or severely limit nightshades. After a period of strict elimination, your doctor may then advise that you slowly add them back. But, and there’s always a but, not many of us end up finding success when deciding to add nightshades back into our diet.
Operation Nightshade Elimination
An animal-based diet (Carnivore) is an ancestral diet founded on the principle that certain plants are not actually food for us humans, and that we should avoid them. Nightshades are one of these “foods.” Besides getting back to our Primal roots with a species-appropriate diet, an animal-based diet has other purposes; like helping to reduce inflammation in the body, reset the immune system, and reduce the permeability associated with a leaky gut. This diet and lifestyle protocol does wonders when it comes to managing and reversing symptoms caused by chronic ailments and autoimmune diseases.
When starting an animal-based diet, I recommend keeping a journal to track your symptoms, what foods you have eliminated, and how you feel if you add them back. If you find that nightshades trigger a flare for you, then it is time to consider eliminating them for good.
Keep it Up!
As with many of the experiences that come along with biohacking, experiencing relief from your symptoms thanks to the elimination of nightshades may take some time. It may even take up to a year before you can truly feel the effects.
That is why it is important to stick with the plan to ensure resolution of any long-term issues.
Wait…I Can Never Have Tomatoes Again?
It is possible that nightshades may not be a part of your diet going forward. It is a must that you continue to listen to your body. After all, improving both your health and your quality of life is one of my goals, and it’s a wonderful idea for that to be one of yours, too!
