Ripe Bananas

I've seen people throw bananas out when they start getting brown spots on them.  Now, I don't know if they think the bananas are spoiled or will make them sick or what, but let me just say that fruit with high sugar content is rarely ever a cause of food poisoning.  If you are throwing out bananas with spots on them, you are missing out.  This is when bananas taste their best!  They are the sweetest they will ever be at this stage.  You don't have much time though because they will rapidly deteriorate after this and will start to become mushy and brown inside.  Even if you were to eat a slightly brown and mushy banana, it wouldn't hurt you.  You have to let you nose be your guide.  If it smells fermented, well it's probably too far gone.  I think some people get weirded out by foods that seem like they are spoiled - maybe it's past pull-date or it looks funny. That's not always necessarily an indicator of edibility.  The foods you have to watch out for the most are those with proteins in them (beans, for example) and meats that can have a whole host of bacteria in them... and many times you wouldn't even know if the harmful bacteria were there because there are no visual indicators and you may not be able to smell anything unusual.  But fruits, in general, are safe up until they start to get soft, leaking fluids and smell fermented.  Bananas with spots?  They're in their prime. Don't throw them out - they are the best!