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Acetylsalicylic acid is used in the preparation of some medicines but it is also present in high quantities in many food preparations and varieties of fruits and vegetables.
It's not found in cereals, meat, fish, milk, eggs or cheeses (apart from mozzarella which contains a minimal quantity that must be considered, nevertheless).
The diet for salicylates doesn't require the total exclusion of the substance, but just a limited use.
Below you will find an alphabetical listing of foods containing this substance and the quantity of it that they contain from lowest to highest amount (expressed in milligrams per 100 grams of edible substance), taken from the fifth edition (1994) of “Food Composition and nutrition tables” by Souci, Fachmann e Kraut, published in Italy by OEMF, Milan.
These lists make up the base with which you can calculate the quantity of salicylates that you ingest on a daily basis.
With regard to medicines, those that contain the highest content of acetylsalicylic acid are: Aspirin, Aspro, Cemerit, and Flectadol, but there are others that contain it as well and therefore the use of any medicine should be discussed with your doctor beforehand. If you need to take an anti pyretic or an analgesic that doesn't call for a prescription, ask your pharmacy if they have alternative products that don't contain salicylates.
If a person has already had an allergic reaction to an analgesic, it's not rare to find that allergy tests reveal that he also has reactivity towards acetylsalicylic acid. However the opposite isn't necessarily true: a person who tests negatively to the salicylate test could nevertheless have an allergic reaction to these medicines (something that you should always keep in mind when taking any type of medicine).
A positive reaction to the allergy test for salicylates is always a reason for greater caution when analgesics must be taken. Any possible symptoms that arise when taking these products should always be communicated to your doctor.
How to regulate your intake of natural salicylates
Unless specified by a doctor, it's not usually necessary to totally eliminate the substances that contain natural salicylates, but it's indispensable to restrict the quantity that is ingested to an acceptable limit.
People may develop irritations if they exceed a dosage of 12-15 mg per day. This explains why a person doesn't necessarily have a strong reaction when he eats one strawberry, for example, but might experience itching when he eats a great amount of this food.
Only in particular cases will a doctor prescribe the complete elimination of these foods for a limited period.
The quantity of salicylates that a person can ingest on diet days must not exceed 2,60 mg per day unless otherwise specified by a doctor. On free days there is no limit.
Note: according to E.H. Corder (Journal of Allergy Clinical Immunology Vol 89 N 1 Part 2 p. 347) the lowest dose of aspirin that can cause disturbances in highly sensitive subjects is 0,8 mg per day, while the dose for natural salicylates is 2,60 mg.
The following two tables provide a list of products containing salicylates and the amount of this substance per gram in quantity and alphabetical order.
List of salicylate content of various foods in ascending order
0.02 Mozzarella
0.03 Chives
0.04 Fresh peas
0.07 Brussels sprouts
0.07 Cashews
0.08 Parsley
0.08 Leeks
0.08 Red cabbage
0.08 papaya
0.10 Garlic
0.11 Green beans
0.11 Mango
0.12 Potato
0.12 Sunflower seeds
0.13 Tomato
0.13 Fresh corn
0.13 Tomato sauce
0.14 Asparagus
0.14 Hazelnuts
0.14 Plums
0.14 Passion fruit
0.16 Turnip
0.16 Cauliflower
0.16 Onion
0.16 Pineapple juice
0.18 Red beet |
0.18 Lemon
0.18 Fig
0.18 Persimmon
0.19 Apple juice
0.23 Carrot
0.23 Sesame seeds
0.24 Cultivated mushrooms
0.30 Eggplant
0.30 Walnut
0.31 Apple
0.32 Kiwi
0.34 Olive
0.45 Parsnip
0.46 Brazil nut
0.47 Instant coffee
0.48 Watermelon
0.49 Sweet potato
0.55 Pistachio
0.56 Mandarin orange
0.58 Spinach
0.58 Peach
0.60 Avocado
0.61 Red wine
0.63 Pumpkin
0.63 White wine |
0.64 Dried figs
0.65 Broccoli
0.68 Grapefruit
0.78 Cucumber
0.84 Watercress
0.85 Cherries
1.00 Chicory and radicchio
1.04 Zucchini
1.12 Peanuts
1.20 Peppers
1.24 radishes
1.40 Strawberries
1.40 Grapes
1.40 Canned pineapple
1.90 Endive
2.10 Pineapple
2.40 Orange
2.58 Apricots
3.00 Almonds
3.10 Blackcurrant
3.70 Tea
4.50 Dried dates
5.10 Raspberries
5.10 Redcurrant
6.29 Honey
6.73 Raisins |
Quantity expressed in milligrams per 100 grams of food.
List in alphabetical order
3.00 Almonds
0.31 Apple
0.19 Apple juice
2.58 Apricot
0.14 Asparagus
0.60 Avocado
0.18 Beets (red)
3.10 Blackcurrants
0.46 Brazil nuts
0.65 Broccoli
0.07 Brussels sprouts
0.08 Cabbage (red)
0.23 Carrots
0.07 Cashews
0.16 Cauliflower
0.85 Cherries
1.00 Chicory and radicchio
0.03 Chives
0.47 Coffee (instant)
0.13 Corn (fresh)
0.24 Cultivated mushrooms
4.50 Dates (dried)
0.30 Eggplant
1.90 Endive
0.18 Figs
0.64 Figs (dried)
0.10 Garlic |
0.68 Grapefruit
1.40 Grapes
0.11 Green beans
0.14 Hazelnuts
6.29 Honey
0.32 Kiwi
0.08 Leeks
0.18 Lemon
0.56 Mandarin orange
0.11 Mango
0.02 Mozzarella
0.34 Olive
0.16 Onion
2.40 Orange
0.08 Papaya
0.08 Parsley
0.45 Parsnip
0.14 Passion fruit
0.58 Peach
1.12 Peanuts
0.04 Peas (fresh)
1.20 Peppers
0.18 Persimmon
2.10 Pineapple
1.40 Pineapple (canned)
0.16 Pineapple juice
0.55 Pistachio
0.14 Plums
0.12 Potato |
0.49 Potato (sweet)
0.63 Pumpkin
1.24 Radishes
6.73 Raisins
5.10 Raspberries
5.10 Redcurrant
0.23 Sesame seeds
0.58 Spinach
1.40 Strawberries
0.12 Sunflower seeds
3.70 Tea
0.13 Tomato
0.13 Tomato sauce
0.16 Turnips
0.30 Walnuts
0.84 Watercress
0.48 Watermelon
0.61 Wine (red)
0.63 White wine
1.04 Zucchini |
Quantity expressed in milligrams per 100 grams of food.
© The editorial rights to this document are reserved to SMA Srl Servizi Medici Associati - Via Vegezio 12, 20149 Milano - Health Director: Dr Attilio Speciani MD (copyright to be cited upon usage).
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