How to Eat Potatoes for Your Health
Potatoes are one of the most common foods in the world. This vegetable can be prepared in many different ways and used in a variety of dishes. But, unfortunately, it is often perceived as a product that is undesirable for health. However, in fact, potatoes are a valuable source of many important nutrients that are essential for maintaining health. In this article, we will discuss how to consume potatoes for maximum benefit to your health.
The Nutritional Value and Benefits of Potatoes: The Best Ways to Cook Them to Preserve Their Health Benefits
Potatoes are not only a favorite food of many people, but also a valuable source of potassium. Potassium, concentrated inside cells, plays an important role in stabilizing the charge potentials of cell membranes, is involved in the excitation of the heart muscle and the tone of the muscles that ensure the contraction of the vascular wall. In addition, potassium is good at regulating blood pressure.
Potassium deficiency can lead to hypertension, and potatoes are one of the best foods rich in this element. Besides potatoes, the record holders for potassium content are apricots, raisins, bananas, beans, and lentils. However, you need to eat large amounts of these foods to get your daily requirement of potassium. For example, in order to get the required amount of potassium from beans, you need to eat 500 grams of the product. Potatoes are a more accessible and convenient source of potassium than other foods.
However, to maximize the health benefits of potatoes, you should cook them in the oven or in the microwave. Other types of cooking, such as frying or stir-frying, can reduce the potato’s health benefits and are not consistent with a healthy diet. Therefore, to get the most benefits from potatoes, it is best to choose them baked.
Although 100 grams of potatoes contains 16 to 20 grams of carbohydrates, most of which are starches, the root vegetable is rich in potassium and vitamin C. If we eat 500 grams of potatoes, we get a daily dose of potassium and vitamin C.
But that’s not all – potatoes also contain fiber, which is necessary for proper intestinal function. If we eat 500 grams of potatoes, we get about 10 grams of fiber. In addition, if we cool the potatoes and reheat them the next day or just eat them cold, they will form resistant starch.
Resistant starch has properties similar to healthy fiber because it serves as food for the bacteria that live in our intestines. These bacteria produce short-chain fatty acids that have positive effects on metabolism, immunity and even mental performance.
Potatoes do have many benefits, but it is worth noting that they can raise blood glucose levels for a short time. However, if you do not have diabetes or insulin resistance, there is no need to worry about it. Potatoes are also a more affordable food than many other alternatives.
The Mediterranean diet, for example, allows for durum wheat pasta or whole-grain products, which contain far more carbohydrates than potatoes. However, they are not as rich in potassium as potatoes. Overall, potatoes are a healthy and affordable food that can be a great alternative to more expensive foods unless you have specific medical contraindications to eating them.
Conclusion
In conclusion, potatoes are a product that is not only tasty, but also good for our health. It contains potassium, vitamin C and fiber, which play an important role in maintaining the health of our body. That said, despite its carbohydrate content, potatoes can be safe to eat for those who are physically active and do not have any problems with being overweight. So if you want to fill your nutritional needs and prevent various diseases, you should not give up on potatoes in your diet.