CYBERMED LIFE - ORGANIC  & NATURAL LIVING

Dietary Modification - Nightshade Free

Nightshade Free: The Solanaceae, or nightshades, are an economically important family of flowering plants. The family ranges from annual and perennial herbs to vines, lianas, epiphytes, shrubs, and trees, and includes a number of important agricultural crops, medicinal plants, spices, weeds, and ornamentals. Many members of the family contain potent alkaloids, and some are highly toxic, but many, including tomatoes, potatoes, eggplant, bell/chili peppers, and tobacco are widely used. The family belongs to the order Solanales, in the asterid group and class Magnoliopsida (dicotyledons). The Solanaceae consists of about 98 genera and some 2,700 species, with a great diversity of habitats, morphology and ecology.

The name Solanaceae derives from the genus Solanum, "the nightshade plant". The etymology of the Latin word is unclear. The name may come from a perceived resemblance of certain solanaceous flowers to the sun and its rays. At least one species of Solanum is known as the "sunberry". Alternatively, the name could originate from the Latin verb solari, meaning "to soothe", presumably referring to the soothing pharmacological properties of some of the psychoactive species of the family.

The family has a worldwide distribution, being present on all continents except Antarctica. The greatest diversity in species is found in South America and Central America. In 2017, scientists reported on their discovery and analysis of a fossil tomatillo found in the Patagonian region of Argentina, dated to 52 million years B.P. The finding has pushed back the earliest appearance of the Solanaceae plant family. As tomatillos likely developed later than other nightshades, this may mean that the Solanaceae may have first developed during the Mesozoic Era.

The Solanaceae include a number of commonly collected or cultivated species. The most economically important genus of the family is Solanum, which contains the potato (S. tuberosum, in fact, another common name of the family is the "potato family"), the tomato (S. lycopersicum), and the eggplant or aubergine (S. melongena). Another important genus, Capsicum, produces both chili peppers and bell peppers.

The genus Physalis produces the so-called groundcherries, as well as the tomatillo (Physalis philadelphica), the Cape gooseberry and the Chinese lantern. The genus Lycium contains the boxthorns and the wolfberry Lycium barbarum. Nicotiana contains, among other species, tobacco. Some other important members of Solanaceae include a number of ornamental plants such as Petunia, Browallia, and Lycianthes, and sources of psychoactive alkaloids, Datura, Mandragora (mandrake), and Atropa belladonna (deadly nightshade). Certain species are widely known for their medicinal uses, their psychotropic effects, or for being poisonous.

Most of the economically important genera are contained in the subfamily Solanoideae, with the exceptions of tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum, Nicotianoideae) and petunia (Petunia × hybrida, Petunioideae).

Many of the Solanaceae, such as tobacco and petunia, are used as model organisms in the investigation of fundamental biological questions at the cellular, molecular, and genetic levels.

  • Dietary Modification - Nightshade Free

  • Nightshade Free

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    Nightshade Free:The Solanaceae, or nightshades, are an economically important family of flowering plants. The family ranges from annual and perennial herbs to vines, lianas, epiphytes, shrubs, and trees, and includes a number of important agricultural crops, medicinal plants, spices, weeds, and ornamentals. Many members of the family contain potent alkaloids, and some are highly toxic, but many, including tomatoes, potatoes, eggplant, bell/chili peppers, and tobacco are widely used. The family belongs to the order Solanales, in the asterid group and class Magnoliopsida (dicotyledons). The Solanaceae consists of about 98 genera and some 2,700 species, with a great diversity of habitats, morphology and ecology.

  • Reversal of premature ovarian failure in a patient with Sjögren syndrome using an elimination diet protocol.

    Abstract Title:

    Reversal of premature ovarian failure in a patient with Sjögren syndrome using an elimination diet protocol.

    Abstract Source:

    J Altern Complement Med. 2010 Jul;16(7):807-9. PMID: 20618099

    Abstract Author(s):

    Joe Feuerstein

    Article Affiliation:

    Department of Integrative Medicine, Stamford Hospital, Stamford, CT 06902, USA. This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

    Abstract:

    BACKGROUND:Premature ovarian failure is diagnosed with a picture of amenorrhea, elevated follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), and age under 40 years. Twenty percent (20%) of patients with premature ovarian failure have a concomitant autoimmune disease. Cases of premature ovarian failure associated with Sjögren syndrome have been reported in the literature.

    PATIENT AND METHOD:We report a case of a 42-year-old white woman with Sjögren syndrome and premature ovarian failure who underwent a reversal of her premature ovarian failure and restoration of normal menses using an elimination diet protocol. The patient was diagnosed with her rheumatological condition in 2005 and started on disease-modifying antirheumatoid drugs, which were taken intermittently due to a concern over medication side-effects. Her menses became irregular at the time of initial diagnosis and finally ceased in 2006, with a dramatic elevation in her FSH, indicative of autoimmune-induced premature ovarian failure. In March 2009, she commenced an elimination diet protocol, eliminating gluten, beef, eggs, dairy products, nightshade vegetables, refined sugars, and citrus fruit for 4 months.

    RESULTS:Her repeat laboratory tests after 4 months showed a drop in FSH from 88 to 6.5 and a drop in erythrocyte sedimentation rate from 40 to 16. Her menses also resumed and her rheumatological symptoms significantly improved.

    CONCLUSIONS:It is hypothesized that the restoration of normal menses was caused by reduced inflammation in the ovarian tissue and supports the hypothesis that the gut immune system can influence autoimmune disease and inflammation.

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