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Half cooked beans can be toxic
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by jdkk | January 17, 2008 at 06:31 pm
1701 views | 11 Recommendations | 10 comments
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".. specialists are always careful to tell people to cook meat fully in order to prevent food poisoning or illness. Well, it turns out that this same type of warning should be given about cooking beans.
"Red kidney bean poisoning has not been reported often in the United States but it is still important to be aware of the potential for illness,"
Most RecentMost Recommended Comments (10)
at 19:56 on January 17th, 2008
Hello jdkk,
This was a great story ..
Have you or any one in your family experienced this?
Did you already know about it?
~ Swan
at 21:05 on January 17th, 2008
Hiya Swan, No I didn't know anything about it... have never had it myself but am sure careful about beans now.
at 23:49 on January 17th, 2008
Amazing!
I wonder if the toxicity is related to the famous "effect" beans can have on some people?! (a la Blazing Saddles....)
at 04:25 on January 18th, 2008
Not sure... but now we know what to blame!
at 23:51 on January 17th, 2008
actually it is robinm
(i thought this was well known about beans being toxic if not handled / cooked properly)2
at 00:32 on January 18th, 2008
jdkk, I also didn't know about beans but on a similar subject I have heard that potatoes can be lethal... green ones anyway.
at 00:46 on January 25th, 2008
jdkk, I like this story. It's good stuff.
at 00:48 on January 25th, 2008
Interesting subject. Decided to look into it further and thought others might be interested in this:
Red Kidney Bean Poisoning is an illness caused by a toxic agent, Phytohaemagglutnin (Kidney Bean Lectin). This toxic agent is found in many species of beans, but it is in highest concentration in red kidney beans (Phaseolus vulgaris). The unit of toxin measure is the hemagglutinating unit (hau). Raw kidney beans contain from 20,000 to 70,000 hau, while fully cooked beans contain from 200 to 400 hau. White kidney beans, another variety of Phaseolus vulgaris, contain about one-third the amount of toxin as the red variety; broad beans (Vicia faba) contain 5 to 10% the amount that red kidney beans contain.
As few as 4 or 5 beans can bring on symptoms. Onset of symptoms varies from between 1 to 3 hours. Onset is usually marked by extreme nausea, followed by vomiting, which may be very severe. Diarrhea develops somewhat later (from one to a few hours), and some persons report abdominal pain. Some persons have been hospitalized, but recovery is usually rapid (3 - 4 h after onset of symptoms) and spontaneous.
at 21:45 on January 25th, 2008
jdkk, I like this story. It's good stuff.
at 21:47 on January 25th, 2008
Thanks for that useful information. I'll be sure an cook my beans properly before I sit down to my next feed of this delightful gas-invoking delicacy!!