How dangerous is rye?
People are telling me about rye flour, ergotism, and LSD. Apparently there are reasons to believe the Salem witch trials were caused by ergotism. It sounds to me like I don't have much to worry about since millers have stopped grinding the ergots up with the rye but I am not sure.
Do I need to be concerned about keeping rye flour for too long? Is baking sourdough rye bread dangerous (because the wet, rye flour sits out for so long)? Are there any special considerations to keep in mind when working with rye?
Best Answer
Looking on the internet, I see ergot is when the rye berries turn into this 
and develops these 
Gross! Wouldn't you notice if that showed up in your kitchen?
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Quick Answer about "How dangerous is rye?"
Why? Because of its high susceptibility to infection by a fungus by the name of Claviceps purpurea, otherwise known as ergot. It might not sound terribly dangerous, but trust me, ergot is no ordinary fungus.Can rye be poisonous?
Ergotism is a form of poisoning from ingesting grains, typically rye, that have been infected by the ascomycete fungus Claviceps purpurea. The infection replaces individual grains with dark, hard ergots (see image 2A) that get mixed in to the healthy grain during harvest and milling.Can you get sick from rye bread?
Once contracted from rye bread, ergotism (also called St. Anthony's fire) causes severe convulsions, muscle spasms, delusions, the sensation of crawling under the skin, and, in extreme cases, gangrene of the extremities.Do people still get Ergot poisoning?
Does ergot poisoning still exist? Ergot poisoning still occurs today. The mycologist Louis Rene Tulasne discovered the connection between rye and ergotism in the 19th century . Consequently, public health organizations increased their efforts to address ergot contamination, and larger outbreaks became rare.How common is Ergot poisoning?
The work of St. Anthony is commemorated in the 16th-century Isenheim altarpiece by Matthius Grunewald (Figure 1). Modern day ergotism is quite rare. Only 0.001% to 0.002% of current ergotamine users develop ergotism.Top 10 Books That Inspired Horrific Real Life Crimes
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