# but is it poisonous? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 20, 2004, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/but-is-it-poisonous/240934 "2004-04-20T01:09:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![sassy\_synthia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/57b2e6/32.png) [@sassy\_synthia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sassy_synthia)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2004, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/but-is-it-poisonous/240934/1 "2004-04-20T01:09:04Z")
I am no where near domesticated and I credit what I do know about cooking and cleaning to my mother. When I moved out of the house and started cooking, the first thing my mother told me was to immediatly throw away and garlic, onion or potatoes that start to sprout. I was told that it is poisonous. This confuses me, how could something poisonous grow out of something not poisonous? I am not about to chop any of these things up and eat them… but I do throw away alot of onion, garlic and potato. Am I wasting food by doing this? And are the sprouts really poisonous? ---
**Author:** ![Inigo\_Montoya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inigo_montoya/32/124_2.png) [@Inigo\_Montoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inigo_Montoya)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2004, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/but-is-it-poisonous/240934/2 "2004-04-20T01:22:51Z")
Anecdotal evidence here, so don’t sue me if it kills you. I’m a cheap bastard and I don’t care if what I’m cooking with has sprouted leaves or fingers (I draw the line at visible mold, however). I seem to be doing quite fine after having employed a great deal of sprouted onions & garlic. I do recommend knocking the rootlets of the taters, however. Some nasty hallucinogenic alkaloids in those things–not to be truffled with! ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2004, 1:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/but-is-it-poisonous/240934/3 "2004-04-20T01:25:26Z")
The master speaks. About potatos at least. [http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a2\_055b.html](http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a2_055b.html) ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2004, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/but-is-it-poisonous/240934/4 "2004-04-20T01:29:48Z")
As for garlic, it seems the main ingredient in the green sprout is allicin, and it doesn’t sound too poisonous. Just bitter. > [@](#): > > The green sprout in many cloves of garlic is a prime source of allicin, although it may add a “harsh” flavor to foods. from [http://www.ibiblio.org/pub/academic/medicine/alternative-healthcare/faqs/FAQ:-Garlic](http://www.ibiblio.org/pub/academic/medicine/alternative-healthcare/faqs/FAQ:-Garlic) ---
**Author:** ![Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tapioca_Dextrin)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2004, 1:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/but-is-it-poisonous/240934/5 "2004-04-20T01:40:52Z")
Some [real doctors](http://ntp-server.niehs.nih.gov/htdocs/Chem_Background/ExecSumm/ChaconineSolanine.html) speak on the subject of green potatos. It’s way too hard for me to understand, but it looks like they can occasionally be _real_ nasty. > [@](#): > > In another case report, 7 family members who ate greened potatoes exhibited poisoning symptoms after 2 days (Hansen, 1925; cited by Jadhav et al., 1981). The mother (age 45) and daughter (age 16) died; the other 5 family members recovered.