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Your Potato Questions Answered
Are potatoes fattening?
On its own, a 100 gram potato contains 0.1 grams of fat. Added elements such as oil, butter or cream create a higher fat content in potato dishes. According to Professor Esté Vorster, Director: Africa Unit for Transdisciplinary Health Research at the Faculty of Health Sciences of North West University, “Potatoes, when boiled in their skin, have low energy values and are ideal for both slimming and maintaining a healthy body weight.” Potatoes can satisfy your appetite for up to three hours which is an added benefit for people on a weight-loss diet.
Are potatoes rich in nutrients?
Important micronutrients in a 100 gram potato include approximately seven milligrams of calcium, 0.8 milligrams of iron, 16 milligrams of magnesium, 45 milligrams of phosphorous, 401 milligrams of potassium and 21 milligrams of Vitamin C.
Potatoes have a low sodium content and less than 150 calories per serving. A healthy potassium intake for an adult is as much as 4 700 mg per day. One potato, baked in its skin, delivers 17 percent of this requirement.
Lesser micronutrients available in potatoes include Vitamin B6, which is essential to the regulation of our metabolism and conversion of foods to energy. Potatoes also include zinc, which contributes to a healthy skin, and thiamin, which also plays a role in the metabolism of carbohydrates. In a medium-sized potato, you will also find trace amounts of folic acid and niacin.
Do potatoes have a high glycaemic index (GI)?
Many popular diets suggest that eating foods that have a low GI promotes weight loss. It is, however sometimes necessary to give our bodies foods that have a high GI – for example when athletes are in recovery and need to restore liver glycogen supplies, or under any circumstances where readily available glucose is needed. Boiled potatoes, eaten hot as mash, for example, have a high glycaemic index. Potatoes eaten cold such as in a salad, however, have a low to medium GI, and are ideal for diabetic diets, and all diets where a low GI is preferable. By adding mayonnaise, oil or butter to cold potatoes, the GI is lowered even more.
Do I really need carbohydrates in my diet?
While high-protein, low-carbohydrate eating plans may show some external physical results, it is not necessarily doing us any favours in the long term. Low carbohydrate diets can result in fatigue and dehydration caused by increased protein metabolism, which also places strain on our kidneys. By restricting our intake of carbohydrates we also starve the body of the dietary fibre that is important for healthy digestion. The starch in potatoes yields glucose that is essential for our mental and physical energy, so yes, you really do need carbohydrates in your diet and potatoes are an ideal source.
How should I store my potatoes?
Potatoes should be stored in a dark, dry and cool place that is well-ventilated. Keep them separate from pungent vegetables (which give off gasses that promote decay in potatoes). Take them out of plastic bags.
Should I eat potatoes that are green?
The green colour sometimes found in potatoes is caused by chlorophyll and indicates that solanine is present. It is usually due to the potato’s exposure to light. Solanine is a natural toxin that is only really harmful in large doses. Nevertheless, if a potato is green in parts, simply cut off the green bit and prepare the remaining potato as usual.
Can I still eat potatoes that have developed sprouts?
Sprouting potatoes are typically not fresh but can be eaten if you break off the sprouts.
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