# Potatoes A Trigger ?



## elyag (Oct 14, 2007)

I've always thought of potatoes as a fairly bland and benign food but lately they seem to cause ibs-D and cramps. Plain potatoes...nothing on on them. I do fine with rice, pasta and bread so I'm wondering if it's the fiber in potatoes. Anyone else have this problem?


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## Kathleen M. (Nov 16, 1999)

Could be fiber or the type of starch in them just isn't quite agreeing with you. However usually wheat is the worst offender for large amounts of resistant starch more than potatoes, but some people's systems are just quirky and if that food consistently bothers you even in smaller amounts than similar items then it may just be one of those things you need to avoid.


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## ziggy7 (Oct 24, 2009)

last time i ate just 1-2 bites of a sweet potato i was in alot of pain.i think it's the starches in them that are bad but the potato skin might be good.also just wondering have you ever tried eating broccoli and or meat with no bread or pasta? i find if you mix spagetti with broccoli and or fatty meat it will give horrible gas for about 20 hours.but if you eat just broccoli and fatty meat you will get zero gas.also brown rice is one of the grains that you can eat with broccoli and fatty meat and it will not cause much gas.http://www.westonaprice.org/food-features/497-be-kind-to-your-grains-and-your-grains-will-be-kind-to-you.html


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## Hester (Jul 5, 2009)

Nearly all the potatoes in the U.S. are genetically modified and produce their own toxin to kill weeds and prevent disease. There is only one brand of organic red potatoes that I have been able to find. It does NOT bother me. If I eat "normal" potatoes, I get sick. Is there a connection? I wish I could prove it but I think there is. Monsanto thought the toxin would be destroyed by our stomach acid. It is not. I believe some of us are becoming sensitive to it. You can find a great deal of info on GMOs and Monsanto on YouTube and via Jeffrey Smith's book and links "Seeds of Deception". (I am not any relation to the author but believe he makes some very valid arguments!) Several newscasts are also available on YouTube regarding the hazards of GMOs. See what happens when you find and buy (Trader Joe's) the organic labled red potatoes. Let us know.


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## elyag (Oct 14, 2007)

Thanks for your replies. Kathleen.. yup..it might be something I'm just going to have to avoid although I hate having to eliminate any more foods.Ziggy...I seem to do OK with other starches in moderation, bread, rice and pasta. I need to continue to keep them in my diet as I've lost a lot of weight over the past few years due to eliminating some other foods and need to keep my weight up. For some reason I don't do well with brown rice...too bad because it's much healthier than white rice.Hester...interesting info...I pretty much eat all organic and non processed foods. The potatoes I eat are from Whole Foods ...we don't have a Trader Joe's here. Are the Trader Joe's potatoes different than the ones I buy at whole Foods. I think Whole Foods has to let you know when their produce and other foods are not organic.


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## Jackmat (Jun 13, 2005)

Elyag (Gayle?)If you're losing more and more foods from your diet, its the actual fear of losing them, that is bringing about that outcome. I've been through that myself, but once I turned my thought processes around, I recovered very quickly, successfully re-introduced lost foods and put on much needed weight.You mention that brown rice is a problem for you, then I might suggest that "fructose" in the brown rice is the culprit. If so, stop eating applesauce - its loaded with fructose. I too had a fructose problem, but since abstaining from wheat, my fructose tolerance has improved markedly and brown rice is not a problem at all. I even eat apples which is almost impossible for fructose sensitive people.Jackmat


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## Hester (Jul 5, 2009)

If the bag does not SAY organic than they are modified. Any packaged or frozen potatoes or potato products are most likely GM.


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## ziggy7 (Oct 24, 2009)

in canada and usa a food item can say organic while still haveing up too 30% GMO in it also beef can say organic when the cow is still fed grains... organic standards have really gone down hill. many growers take shortcuts and go straight for being able to use the organic label not careing if there food is good or not.it's best to get locally grown foods and or foods from people you trust.and also if Trader Joe's potatos give you no problems and make you feel good then i would say they are ok. they should be better than other potatos if they are the only ones that don't make you sick.


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## elyag (Oct 14, 2007)

Jackmat said:


> Elyag (Gayle?)If you're losing more and more foods from your diet, its the actual fear of losing them, that is bringing about that outcome. I've been through that myself, but once I turned my thought processes around, I recovered very quickly, successfully re-introduced lost foods and put on much needed weight.You mention that brown rice is a problem for you, then I might suggest that "fructose" in the brown rice is the culprit. If so, stop eating applesauce - its loaded with fructose. I too had a fructose problem, but since abstaining from wheat, my fructose tolerance has improved markedly and brown rice is not a problem at all. I even eat apples which is almost impossible for fructose sensitive people.Jackmat


Jackmat...yes it's "Gayle".







I'm at a point now where I do need to bring back some foods into my diet. I'm no better off now than when I started eliminating foods so I might as well start trying to reintroduce some of them. Except for obvious triggers like foods that are high in fat. I really need to look more into eliminating fructose. Thanks for the tip about applesauce...I eat it everyday.


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## elyag (Oct 14, 2007)

Hester said:


> If the bag does not SAY organic than they are modified. Any packaged or frozen potatoes or potato products are most likely GM.


The potatoes I get from WF are loose not packaged but I can always check with the produce dept to see if they're organic. Potatoes are supposed to be one of the worst foods as far as toxins from pesticides so I'm hoping the ones I've been eating are organic.


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## elyag (Oct 14, 2007)

ziggy7 said:


> in canada and usa a food item can say organic while still haveing up too 30% GMO in it also beef can say organic when the cow is still fed grains... organic standards have really gone down hill. many growers take shortcuts and go straight for being able to use the organic label not careing if there food is good or not.it's best to get locally grown foods and or foods from people you trust.and also if Trader Joe's potatos give you no problems and make you feel good then i would say they are ok. they should be better than other potatos if they are the only ones that don't make you sick.


I agree and wish I lived in an area where I could buy local grown foods. Supposedly WF tries to get their food locally but who knows if that really happens. I miss Trader Joes... there were tons of TJ's where I lived in Southern Cal but none in CO.


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## Tracey1983 (Jun 22, 2010)

Funny you should mention potatoes because Ive noticed when I eat them I tend to get more bloated which obviously leads to more abdo discomfort.


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## searching4answers (Mar 4, 2010)

Of all the foods, potatoes cause the worst reaction for me. It was surprising when I ate a plate of mashed potatoes and within 15 minutes I could see my stomach bloat up. I'm also guessing it's the starch.


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## LizSometimes (May 8, 2014)

I know this is a very old thread, but I just wanted to jump in and say to *searching4answers* that this almost EXACTLY what happened to me when I challenged potatoes. Within minutes, I could SEE my stomach swell so I looked mildly pregnant. It was actually really creepy. Followed by about 9 hours of uttery miserable nausea. And they were thicky peeled, white potatoes, boiled and eaten fresh. May very well be the starch issue. Resistant starch, probably (even though my cooking/eatng method should have had very little resistant starch, but who knows...)


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## RoryT (Oct 11, 2014)

To add my small coin to the dusty pile - I have trouble with potatoes too. I can tolerate rice, wheat noodles (but not bread), pumpkin, and sweet potato pretty well, but potatoes give me loads of gas and a bit of swelling.

One thing I have noticed with starchy foods is that they digest much better when paired with a fat source. I guess this is just because it slows digestion, giving the gut more time to break it down.


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