peel before cooking can help determine the level of solanine contained in the potato; bitterness indicates high glycoalkaloid content. If the potato has more than 0.2 mg/g of solanine, an immediate burning sensation will develop in the mouth. Recorded human poisonings Though fatalities from solanine poisoning are rare, there have been several notable cases of human solanine poisonings. Between 1865 and 1983, there were around 2000 documented human cases of solanine poisoning, with most recovering fully and 30 deaths. Because the symptoms are similar to those of food poisoning, it is possible that there are many undiagnosed cases of solanine toxicity. In 1899, 56 German soldiers fell ill due to solanine poisoning after consuming cooked potatoes containing 0.24 mg of solanine per gram of potato. There were no fatalities, but a few soldiers were left partially paralyzed and jaundiced. In 1918, there were 41 cases of solanine poisoning in people who had eaten a bad crop of potatoes with 0.43 mg solanine/g potato with no recorded fatalities. In Scotland in 1918, there were 61 cases of solanine poisoning after consumption of potatoes containing 0.41 mg of solanine per gram of potato, resulting in the death of a five-year old. A case report from 1925 reported that 7 family members who ate green potatoes fell ill from solanine poisoning 2 days later, resulting in the deaths of the 45-year-old mother and 16-year-old daughter. The other family members recovered fully. In another case report from 1959, four members of a British family exhibited symptoms of solanine poisoning after eating jacket potatoes containing 0.5 mg of solanine per gram of potato. There was a mass solanine poisoning incident in 1979 in the U.K., when 78 adolescent boys at a boarding school exhibited symptoms after eating potatoes that had been stored improperly over the summer. Seventeen of them ended up hospitalized, but they all recovered. The potatoes were determined to have between 0.25 and 0.3 mg of solanine per gram of potato. Another mass poisoning was reported in Canada in 1984, after 61 schoolchildren and teachers showed symptoms of solanine toxicity after consuming baked potatoes with 0.5 mg of solanine per gram of potato. In potatoes Potatoes naturally produce solanine and chaconine, a related glycoalkaloid, as a defense mechanism against insects, disease, and herbivores. Potato leaves, stems, and shoots are naturally high in glycoalkaloids. When potato tubers are exposed to light, they turn green