Potato Battery: Exploring the Nutritional Impact of Using Food as a Power Source

[Frenemy90210]

If a potato ( or any other food, for that matter) is used as a battery by say, simply inserting two different metal pins in it and connecting it to a load, then does it reduce the nutritional value of potato ? or does it affect the potato negatively in any way ?

 

[.Scott]

If you connected say a copper and nickel rod into a potato and then allowed a current to pass, I would certainly expect to find copper and nickel salts in the potato.
I wouldn't find that especially appetizing.
It you used lead, that would be much worse.

 

[Tracey3]

Does it affect the potato negatively in any way

As @.Scott said they wouldn't make for the best dinner after putting metals in them. Then again it would depend how long metals would be in the said food. I know that if you would stick copper into fruit with low pH like lemons, you're asking for trouble.

 

[jim mcnamara]

More generally, the addition of trace element metals to foods can cause problems. Median copper intake in the US 1. - 1.6mg/day. The RDA for Cu is 900μg (0.9mg). Which means most of us already get more than enough copper.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK222312/

If you cook with copper pots or prepare acidic foods or serve them in copper, copper leaches into food. Way more than is required.
Long term consequences are nasty.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copper_toxicity

Zinc and other trace element metals have similar issues when ingested at high levels, not to mention non-required elements like lead.

 

[Vanadium 50]

f you cook with copper pots or prepare acidic foods or serve them in copper, copper leaches into food.

Most copper cookware is lined with something less reactive to prevent this.

And it wouldn't be a potato battery thread without saying "The cake is a lie!"

 

[jim mcnamara]

Lining, yes. Not always. FWIW: You can legally buy "decorative" copper mixing bowls that are not lined. At all.
This is an interesting item talking partially about using unlined copper in cooking: http://www.highya.com/articles-guides/copper-cookware-how-to-use-cook-and-care-for-copper-pots-and-pans. I did not know that you need to "season" lined copper cookware.

 

[poertozoes]

Lining, yes. Not always. FWIW: You can legally buy "decorative" copper mixing bowls that are not lined. At all.
This is an interesting item talking partially about using unlined copper in cooking: http://www.highya.com/articles-guides/copper-cookware-how-to-use-cook-and-care-for-copper-pots-and-pans. I did not know that you need to "season" lined copper cookware.

I've got some more related info here - https://nutrisbook.com/zyalix/

 

[Stephenk53]

Would the electricity alone affect the potato?

 

[tuimereng]

No, electricity a on its own won't affect the potato
Find related info http://ultimatebulking.com/

 

[nikkkom]

Lining, yes. Not always. FWIW: You can legally buy "decorative" copper mixing bowls that are not lined. At all.
This is an interesting item talking partially about using unlined copper in cooking: http://www.highya.com/articles-guides/copper-cookware-how-to-use-cook-and-care-for-copper-pots-and-pans. I did not know that you need to "season" lined copper cookware.

These people seem to be living in order to eat... I prefer the opposite.