Do Salicylates Affect The Advice For Vegetable Consumption?
It’s time for more Skribit fun. Today’s question is quite interesting:
Do salicylates in vegetables spike insulin and what does that say about eating lots of vegetables?
What Are Salicylates?
Salicylates are compounds that occur in most plant foods. While they are found predominantly in unripe fruit, salicylates are also found in vegetables, herbs, spices, seeds, flowers, and bark. These compounds are very important for plants, regulating everything from growth and flowering to defense against pests, leaf anatomy, and chloroplast structure.
Where Do I Find Salicylates?
As mentioned above, salicylates are found in most all plant foods, mainly in the skin and just under the skin. But processing of fruits and vegetables as in juices, sauces, syrups, and other such products concentrates the salicylates. Modern genetic engineering has also increased the levels in plants to provide greater resistance to pests. And then of course, the most commonly known salicylates are aspirin and other NSAIDs (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs). They may also be found in any number of personal products, from perfumes to shampoos, cosmetics to mouthwash, and sunscreen to shaving cream.
Looking at fruits and vegetables, common ones with high salicylate levels are:(6)
- Tomatoes
- Citrus fruits
- Avocados
- Broccoli
- Grapes, including wine and champagne
- Plums
- Strawberries
- Almonds
You’ll also find high levels of these compounds in all varieties of tea, honey, and rum. Check link number 6 below for a more complete list.
Why Do I Care?
Some people have a sensitivity to salicylate. That is, a “normal amount” of salicylate prompts adverse effects in the body. But if you have this sensitivity, you probably already know it from the side effects, which can include headaches, hives, diarrhea, asthma, edema, and any number of other issues.
The question that was asked was specifically regarding insulin secretion. I found several studies that show that salicylates do provoke a bit of weirdness in the blood sugar.(7)(8)(9)
Salicylates lower blood sugar and enhance glucose-stimulated insulin secretion in normal and diabetic man. Although the hypoglycemic effect appears to be mediated by enhanced insulin secretion, extrapancreatic mechanisms cannot be excluded. The mechanism of the enhanced insulin secretion appears to be mediated by prostaglandin synthesis inhibition.
There are also strong theoretical arguments that salicylates have deleterious effects on insulin resistance.
The administration of 800 microM of the main triflusal metabolite [a salicylate derivative] to whole mice islets of Langerhans led to a sustained increase in intracellular calcium concentration [Ca(2+)]i level. This was followed by a significantly increase in insulin secretion. In human islets, 200 microM of HTB was sufficient to increase insulin release.
It appears that salicylates provoke an insulin response and a decrease in serum glucose levels. They may also have adverse effects on insulin sensitivity.
And That Means What In Practical Terms?
My advice is to keep eating your vegetables and fruits. I would only advise a reduction if you are showing signs of an “allergy” (it’s not technically an allergy) that causes you the aforementioned hives, headaches, and such, or if adding a few vegetables seems to cause your weight loss to stall. For those of us with normal metabolic function, the possibly deleterious effects of salicylates in vegetables and fruits are far outweighed by the benefits of these foods.
I do think it’s a good idea to keep salicylates in check naturally, by getting them from your produce rather than from your soap, lipstick, toothpaste, grape juice, aspirin, and other concentrated sources. I’d bet that the human body has evolved to handle certain amounts of salicylate and that a little may possibly be a good thing. There’s just no telling what there is in the vegetables that is doing our bodies good.
So How Do I Cut Back On My Salicylate Intake?
Here are five very easy ways to cut back on salicylates should you determine that you need to:
- Eat ripe fruit
- Eat seasonally
- Drink coffee instead of tea
- Ditch the perfumed soaps, deodorants, toothpastes, and cosmetics
- Avoid these products
To the first point, salicylates are highest in unripe fruit and lowest in fruit at the peak of ripeness, right before it comes off the vine/tree. Most of the fruit in the grocery store is picked while still unripe so that it survives shipping and then is artificially ripened. I couldn’t find anything regarding artificial ripening and the natural reduction of salicylate. Given that artificially ripened fruits don’t contain the same amounts of vitamins and other compounds as fruits allowed to fully ripen on-vine, I’m leaning towards higher concentrations of salicylates. So the remedy is to purchase fruit from the farmer’s market (or elsewhere locally) where it’s more likely to have been picked recently.
As for eating seasonally, fruits are available mainly at the end of summer and into fall. The high salicylate vegetables are also only available in certain seasons. This is a way to spread your salicylate exposure around. Further, if you are really concerned about it, you can remove the skin and flesh under the skin, though most plants have high concentrations of vitamins and minerals in the skin. I’d consider this “one-step-forward-one-step-back” unless you have a sensitivity.
And One Final Housekeeping Thing
Someone asked for a post about Michael Pollan’s “In Defense of Food”. That book review was written back in March and can be found here.
What are your thoughts on this issue? Anyone have any other advice or information regarding this?
Sources:
(1) Salicylic Acid
(2) Food Salicylate Content List
(3) Salicylates
(4) Salicylate Sensitivity
(5) Salicylate Allergy
(6) List of Foods and Salicylate Content
(7) Salicylates as hypoglycemic agents
(8) The effect of salicylates on insulin sensitivity
(9) Salicylates increase insulin secretion in healthy obese subjects
About Scott
Scott Kustes loves to cook and loves to eat. He started Real Food University to help you get maximum enjoyment out of the meals that you eat. To find out more about how he has rebelled against the fast food culture and counting calories or carbs, join the Real Food Revolution.
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I actually have Aspirin-Exacerbated Respiratory Disease (AERD) and also known as Samter’s triad, which means that they are allergic to aspirin (and all other NSAIDs), have chronic rhinosinusitis, nasal polyposis, and asthma. With regard to salicylates, I could eat fruit and other natural sources of salicylates without too much worry. Every once in a while, I would have a runny noise, etc. from eating something too high in salicylates.
This past year, I realized I could not breath through my nose for months so I headed on down to my friendly neighborhood ENT. He diagnosed the problem as nasal polyps (growths in my nose) and he said they needed to be removed. He put together the fact that I was allergic to NSAIDs and referred me to an allergist for desensitization. There are studies that suggest desensitizing to Aspirin/NSAIDs post surgery will minimize the recurrence of surgery (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12532116).
So, I had the surgery last fall, definitely not fun, but I can breath again. Then I did two days in an allergy clinic being desensitized to aspirin. Now, I have to take an aspirin every day to continue to have immunity to the allergic reaction. A very strange side affect of this whole thing has been that I no longer have asthma. About a month after my desensitization, I was able to stop taking my asthma meds. I’m a CrossFitter so not having to deal with asthma is a huge advantage.
Anyway, I thought I would share my story because I had no idea allergies to NSAIDs and salicylates existed. I thought I would just have to live with my asthma and other maladies, but so far, I feel cured.
As a side note, I now eat a mostly paleo diet and I CrossFit 5 days a week so I feel my insulin resistance is pretty high even though I take aspirin every day. That statement is very subjective, but I am lean and I feel great when my paleo and crossfit are going 100%.
Hi Scott,
Very interesting to read Mikey’s comments, especially re continued oral aspirin doses. Makes you wonder if salicylate intolerant people could desensitise themselves by forcing down large intakes… Certainly back when I lived on whole meal bread and pasta I was far more tolerant of gluten toxicity than I am now. After 5 years gluten free I tend to notice very markedly when I lapse… No continuous oral desensitisation. I’ve wondered for some time whether this might apply to other plant toxins.
Re advice about vegetable consumption… Better eat vegetables than die of starvation. Given any choice at all, meat beckons, so does the fat…
Peter
Aspirin and other salicylates are known to reduce blood glucose in diabetic patients. New research accepted for publication in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism reveals a similar beneficial effect among obese individuals by increasing the amount of insulin secreted into the bloodstream.
Thanks!
Hi Janet,
As many obese patients and probably all type two diabetics (before their pancreatic beta cells die off) are seriously and chronically hyperinsulinaemic, is this gift of increased hyperinsulinaemia from the plants such a benefical effect? How high does anyone want their blood insulin?
Peter
Peter, I concur regarding your reply to Janet. Increasing insulin secretion seems a bad idea for someone that can’t handle it well.
Keep eating vegetables,
Scott
I would like to know where the information on salicylates in Acacia came from and does it include the fiber? I have been eating acacia fiber every day and had not noticed a big reaction too it so I doubt it has a high level.
There’s actually a couple products out there, specifically for helping people with salicylate intolerance. Salicylates are a subset of a larger group of compounds called phenols. I narrowed down some issues to those, and started taking “No-Fenol”. Works great. I take a few before I eat, and i haven’t had any issues since. It’s nice to have a much wider diet.
Mikey, can you please e-mail me back and let me know where the clinic you stayed at is located. I need help. Thank you.
Hi Mikey, Your story sounds just like mine, except I had the polyps first and the asthma second. The desensitization has been suggested to me also. Could you update your progress? I am sort of skeptical about the treatment. If salicylates cause all these problems it seems dangerous to add even more (the nasal polyp surgurey was the worst thing I have ever expirienced). Thanks in advance for sharing your information.
Thanks for this most in-depth article on sals…very helpful.
What is so frustrating however, is the fact that so many sites have completely conflicting information, esp regarding salicylate content of various foods.
For example, zucchini is listed as moderate on most lists, but was on the ‘very high’ list at the link you provided. Carrots too, move all over the place on these lists.
I suppose peeling them would help in both circumstances, but again….very frustrating.
Just a small but important point — desensitizing to aspirin (or anything else) does not involve “forcing down large intakes” but rather starting with very tiny doses and building up a tolerance. Salicylate can also trigger histamine release in the skin which may be what causes some allergy-like symptoms. Salicylalte can also suppress the production of an enzyme made in the gut but needed by your brain and called phenol sulfotransferase (PST) … if you are low in that enzyme to begin with, suppressing it can be a problem. See more info in the website URL linked to my name.
Not all salicylates are the same, and the charts with divisions between “high” and “moderate” and “low” amounts, etc., are misleading. They are accurate as far as measurements are concerned, but these charts treat all types of salicylate as though they were equal. If you know your chemistry at all, you know that ethyl alcohol (in wine or beer) and methyl alcohol (wood alcohol) are not equal – an equal amount of methyl alcohol as is included in your beer can make you blind or dead. So what is the difference between methyl salicylate and ethyl salicylate? Nobody knows – the studies have never been done. We in the Feingold Association find that some fruits in the “low” group are much more problematic than other fruits in the “high” group. Our list of the most problematic salicylate-containing fruits & veggies was compiled clinically, has stood the test of time, and allows a lot more flexibility than trying to eliminate all “salicylates.” You can see more at our website http://www.feingold.org
Meanwhile, I wanted also to address your comment about gluten. It is not the same as salicylates at all, depending on whether you are actually allergic to it, or whether you have an intolerance caused by a breakdown product called gluteomorphin getting into your blood. This is a morphine-like chemical and it reacts with morphine receptors in your brain. When you were eating gluten all the time, you were tolerant to it the way a morphine addict is tolerant – in other words you didn’t get the “high” …. but after being off it 5 years, you certainly would notice symptoms when you consume it …. it is a drug effect and an addiction effect. If, on the other hand, your sensitivity is caused by coeliac disease, that is a different problem with gluten – it reacts directly with the little protrusions on the wall of the GI tract, damaging them, so that you cannot metabolize things properly. Again, however, there are often mental or mood reactions to this sort of thing. Humans probably were not developed (or created) to digest large amounts of grains, which were not widely available during the entire beginning of the human race. People trying to “live on” bread and pasta often are and it has been connected with schizophrenia, celiac disease with or without GI distress, and autism.
I do not want to convey the idea that to do the Feingold diet one must avoid gluten – it is not eliminated, but in our Foodlist books we mark products containing it for those who have problems with it.
I have read the study and unless I misunderstand, it can also cause increased insulin resistance – not a benefit at all. This may be a lot more complicated than appears at first glance.
Meanwhile, it is interesting that it is mainly the temperate-zone fruits that are problematic, while the tropical fruits (those eaten the most by early Man) are not. Mango, kiwi, papaya, and other tropical fruits are not eliminated on the Stage One Feingold Diet (which eliminates “salicylates”) while apples, berries, cherries, oranges, etc. are. Avocadoes – which is listed in this article as a “high” salicylate – is not generally a problem for salicylate-sensitive people.