Day 136 - Potatoes

“Traditionally potatoes were kept in paper sacks and sold unwashed. This practice protected them from direct sunlight. The modern practice of washing potatoes and packing them in plastic bags allows light to affect the potato and stimulate its production of solanine, the nightshade alkaloid that, in nature, sickens animals that might dig up potatoes for food.

The solanine in potatoes is 4 times greater in the skin than in the rest of the potato. The fatal dose of solanine for an adult is 200-250 mg depending on body weight. Potatoes should not contain more than 20 mg of solanine per 100g, so it would take at least 1 Kg of potatoes (2.2 lbs) to be fatal. Potato peels have been found to contain up to 180 mg of solanine per 100g, so a person consuming 150-200g of deep fried potato peels with a high solanine content could be at considerable risk.

Interestingly, in one study conducted with hamsters who were fed the sprouted portions of potatoes, increased alkaloid content did not seem to impact the nerves or joints nearly as much as the digestive system itself.

The researchers focused on damage to the stomach and intestines when trying to understand the problems caused by ingestion of potato sprout material, and concluded that there were reasons to avoid this material based on digestive system evidence alone.

A bitter taste in potatoes after the potatoes have been cooked is usually a good indication that excessive amounts of alkaloids are present.”*

*http://www.organicfoodee.com/inspiration/craig/nightshadefoods/
http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=george&dbid=62

I got my MRI brain scan results: all clear. I am somewhat relieved, although still worried as no one seems to know what is causing the headache.

In the meantime, I have been avoiding potatoes, as well as other nightshades (see Day 124 - Nightshade Foods), avec rigeur for the past few days, and have thereby completely eliminated my intake of alkaloids (any of a class of nitrogenous organic compounds of plant origin that have pronounced physiological actions on humans*).

I have replaced my normal intake of potatoes with sweet potatoes, which are not classified as nightshade foods, rather fall under the “morning glory” category.

I have thus discovered the huge health benefits associated with sweet potatoes. The Centre for Science in the Public Interest ranks sweet potato number one in nutrition of all vegetables.

Despite the change of diet, the unfathomable headache is still present. On Saturday night I had a really strong attack. I couldn’t sleep all night. I thought my head was going to explode. It pounded on both sides, with an indescribable intensity that I genuinely thought it was going to burst.

I had to sit up in bed to try and alleviate the pain a bit (it slightly diminishes when sitting upright or standing).

As I now know, no painkillers make the pain subside. The only form of consolation was to give vent to the pain and vexation burning inside me through wretched tears.

*Apple dictionary definition

Day 116 - MRI Scan

“MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) is a fairly new technique that has been used since the beginning of the 1980s.

The MRI scan uses magnetic and radio waves, meaning that there is no exposure to X-rays or any other damaging forms of radiation.

Radio waves 10,000 to 30,000 times stronger than the magnetic field of the earth are then sent through the body. This affects the body's atoms, forcing the nuclei into a different position. As they move back into place they send out radio waves of their own. The scanner picks up these signals and a computer turns them into a picture. These pictures are based on the location and strength of the incoming signals.

With an MRI scan it is possible to take pictures from almost every angle, whereas a CT scan only shows pictures horizontally. There is no ionizing radiation (X-rays) involved in producing an MRI scan. MRI scans are generally more detailed, too. The difference between normal and abnormal tissue is often clearer on the MRI scan than on the CT scan.”*

*http://www.netdoctor.co.uk/health_advice/examinations/mriscan.htm

A few weeks ago I discovered that the outrageously priced CT scan I did in January was not of my entire head as I has previously thought, rather only - I kid you not - of my nostrils.

I am therefore still concerned about the possibility of having something in my brain that is causing the headache.

I went to hospital today for the MRI scan. I had already had one done, in January, for my bad shoulder so I knew how it worked.

I was asked to change and was given a white gown to put on. A little boy who had been put to sleep was wheeled by and taken to the MRI room. I was told I would be in after him.

I was strapped to the bed and pushed inside the tunnel, a large, cylinder-shaped magnet. As the machine emits a loud banging sound, patients are always supplied with headphones (usually accompanied by soothing music) to occlude the noise.

There was a problem with the headphones, and I was handed a couple of earplugs instead.

The scan lasted for about twenty loud minutes.

As much as I would like something to show up in my tests, in a way I am hoping nothing will show in this MRI, given the pivotal role the brain plays in the human body.