Question - What is cassava?
Answer - The cited article reports “Cassava (Manihot esculenta) is a drought-tolerant tropical shrub that s cultivated for tis starchy storage roots and leafy vegetation and is believed to be a staple for more than 600 million people in the tropics, half of whom live in Africa. Cassava cultivars are either “bitter” or “sweet”. The former generally contain higher amounts of cyanogenic glycosides, mainly linamarin and structurally similar to lotaustralin. Traditional processing methods are used to remove cyanogenic glycosides and their degradation products from cassava before human consumption.” These authors point out “There are numerous reposts of acute toxicity and death following consumption of toxic cassava.” (Tshala-Katumbay DD et al. Cyanide and the human brain: perspectives from a model of food (cassava) poisoning. 2016 Ann NY Acad Sci 1378:50-57)