One of the most common surprises we can get when opening walnuts is finding one with a little mold inside. Although this may displease some, there is always someone who simply cleans this part and consumes the rest of the fruit normally. But this behavior, no matter how innocent it may seem, can actually be dangerous for our health.
The mold that develops inside nuts belongs to the genera Aspergillus flavus and Aspergillus parasiticus, fungi that mainly affect foods such as peanuts, corn and other nuts. A thread on
When opening a nut that contains fungi, it is not enough to just clean its visible part, since the mold releases aflatoxins, defined by Lurueña as “toxic compounds that can be produced by certain species of molds” and that adhere throughout the food. According to the expert, the consumption of these toxins can be highly harmful to our health, since “they can increase the risk of suffering from liver cancer.”
Mold, being a type of fungus, is not only made up of the visible part that surrounds the affected food. According to Sílvia Romero, dietitian nutritionist and author of the blog Equilibra’t, “it is not enough to remove it; if a food has a lot of mold on the surface, it will surely have penetrated deeply.” Likewise, in this report, dietitian-nutritionist Beatriz Robles assures that “The problem with molds is not in the visible part, but in the mycotoxins, toxic substances produced by some fungi. “Fungal spores are ubiquitous, they are found everywhere.”
For this reason, it is not enough to simply remove the visible portion of mold that we find when opening nuts. This also goes for other products, such as cheese or bread. This is stated by the Food Standards Authority (FSA), which recommends “not eating foods that are obviously rotten or contain mold due to the potential risks.” However, the United States Department of Agriculture maintains some exceptions, such as cured meat products, such as hard cheeses or firm fruits and vegetables, which can be consumed once the moldy part has been removed.
To avoid unpleasant surprises when opening and consuming nuts, Lurueña recommends carrying out certain measures to maintain the safety of the product. He explains that we should “keep these foods in cool, dry places, and throw away any that are moldy.” This way we will avoid exposing ourselves to the risks of consuming moldy food, despite having cleaned the visible part of the fungus.
