Health Benefits of Potatoes

 

It's not common knowledge that potatoes are healthy. However, this versatile vegetable has some unexpected advantages in terms of nutrition and health. Although potato products like french fries and potato skins may be high in calories and fat, potatoes themselves are sodium- and fat-free. When done properly, potatoes can be a delicious, filling, and nutritious food.

The healthy vitamins and minerals potassium, vitamin C, and vitamin B6 are all present in potatoes along with antioxidants. Your digestive system may also benefit from them. A multipurpose root vegetable, potatoes are a common household staple.

They are a type of underground tuber that develops on the Solanum tuberosum plant's roots. Potatoes are abundant in nutrients, generally inexpensive, and simple to farm.

Health Advantages:

Fiber, which helps you lose weight by keeping you fuller longer, is found in potatoes. By regulating blood sugar and cholesterol, fiber can help avoid heart disease. Additionally, potatoes are a great source of vitamins that support healthy bodily functioning and antioxidants that fight disease.

 Potatoes can enhance your health in the ways listed below:

1-Blood Pressure is Reduced:

The skin of baked potatoes is a fantastic source of magnesium and potassium. Lack of potassium in the diet causes the body to retain more sodium, and too much sodium elevates blood pressure. A diet high in potassium can lower blood pressure, protect the heart, and lower the risk of stroke.

Potassium, a mineral that can decrease blood pressure, has been found in plenty in potato skin, according to research. With only 17.3 mg of sodium and 535 mg of potassium, an average-sized baked potato contains around 15% of the daily required potassium intake. High potassium levels can cause the kidneys to eliminate more salt and water, which lowers blood pressure.

2-Aid in Blood Cholesterol Reduction:

The fiber in potatoes is what gives them the ability to reduce cholesterol. The vegetable is a good source of soluble fiber, which lowers harmful cholesterol, as well as insoluble fiber. It's vital to remember that a potato's skin contains the majority of the healthy fiber, thus removing the peel merely removes the fiber. Additionally, if you don't fry them or add anything that raises cholesterol, potatoes by themselves can lower cholesterol. You may prepare a tasty snack by baking your potatoes and topping them with some olive oil.

3-Controlling one's Weight and Satiety:

Dietary fibers are frequently acknowledged as crucial components of weight control and weight loss.

They function in the digestive tract as "bulking agents." As a result, a person feels fuller for longer and is less inclined to ingest additional calories. They also improve satiety and decrease hunger.

4-Might Enhance Digestive Wellness:

Potatoes include resistant starch, which may help digestion. The good bacteria in the stomach eat resistant starch when it reaches the large intestine. It is broken down by these bacteria and converted into short-chain fatty acids.

The short-chain fatty acid butyrate, which serves as the gut bacteria's main food source, is mostly formed from resistant starch from potatoes.

Butyrate has been demonstrated in studies to lessen colon inflammation, boost the colon's defenses, and lower the risk of colorectal cancer. Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis, and diverticulitis patients may benefit from butyrate.

5-Immunity:

According to research, vitamin C may help shorten the length and intensity of a cold. Vitamin C is easily found in potatoes.

According to research, potatoes with color may also strengthen the immune system. According to studies, eating potatoes may reduce the number of leukocytes that are produced by the body during times of infection or inflammation.

6-Boost Mental Health:

Alpha lipoic acid, a coenzyme that supports brain health, is also found in potatoes. The acid had improved Alzheimer's patients' memory problems and even slowed down patient's cognitive deterioration.

Potatoes have been reported to help with the treatment of depression. The neurotransmitters in the brain that control mood can be impacted by them; strangely, they are the same neurotransmitters that are the focus of medication. Before going to bed, eat one simple potato to help your body control your emotions and mood. But hey, just make sure potatoes aren't your primary source of food.

7-Cardiac Health:

The potato's low cholesterol and high levels of fiber, potassium, vitamin C, and vitamin B6 all promote heart health. Significant levels of fiber can be found in potatoes. Fiber assists in reducing the total level of blood cholesterol, hence lowering the risk of heart disease.

It's wonderful to know that potatoes don't contain cholesterol. They also include potassium, fiber, vitamins C and B6, and other nutrients that are excellent for heart health. The vegetable's fiber aids in bringing down blood cholesterol levels that are too high. 

8-Skin:

 The skin is supported by collagen. To lessen the harm that the sun, pollution, and tobacco causes, vitamin C functions as an antioxidant. Collagen is assisted by vitamin C in reducing wrinkles and enhancing skin texture in general.

9-Reduce Inflammation:

Yellow and purple potatoes, per the Arthritis Foundation, help lessen inflammation. This might also imply a defense against rheumatism and arthritis.

Another study found that potato peel extracts and the vegetable's bitter glycoalkaloids, or "bitters," have anti-inflammatory properties. However, the study notes that more research is required before the vegetable may be used for therapeutic purposes. Anthocyanins, another group of chemicals found in potatoes, are likewise anti-inflammatory. When treating intestinal inflammation, they are especially effective. In murine colitis (mouse colitis), potatoes also reduce intestinal inflammation and oxidative stress.

10-Prevent Cancer:

There is folate in potatoes. Folate participates in DNA synthesis and repair, preventing the formation of many different cancer cells brought on by DNA mutations. Consuming fiber-rich foods like potatoes and other fruits and vegetables is linked to a lower risk of colorectal cancer.

According to studies, eating potatoes won't make you get cancer unless you eat them fried. So, if you were concerned that potatoes might cause cancer, you can now rest easy. Potatoes can be enhanced in nutrition by boiling, mashing, or even baking. Potato frying can result in the creation of the cancer-causing chemical acrylamide.

Purple baked potatoes were also proven to reduce the incidence of colon cancer. Researchers had discovered that baked potato extracts prevent the spread of colon cancer stem cells and, in certain cases, even eliminate them.

11-Metabolic Rate:

Vitamin B6 is abundantly found in potatoes. This is crucial for the metabolism of energy because it converts proteins and carbs into glucose and amino acids. The body can use these smaller chemicals for energy more readily.

12-Bone Wellness:

All of the nutrients found in potatoes—iron, phosphorus, calcium, magnesium, and zinc—help the body create and maintain strong, healthy bones. In the synthesis and maturation of collagen, iron and zinc are essential.

Both phosphorus and calcium are needed for bone construction, however, for optimal bone mineralization, it is crucial to maintain a balance between the two minerals. Too much phosphorus and not enough calcium cause bone loss and osteoporosis, respectively.

Nutrition:

A potato's nutritional value in the diet might vary depending on the ingredients or cooking method. The simple potato itself has relatively few calories, but butter, sour cream, and oil all add calories.

It offers vital nutrients like vitamin C, vitamin B6, and some minerals.

A portion of 100 grams (g), or 3.5 ounces, is little more than half the size of a medium potato. This quantity of cooked white potatoes with skin includes

Calories 94

Cholesterol-free 0.15 grams of fat

Dietary fiber in 2.1 grams 

Carbohydrates 21.08 grams 

Protein in 2.10 grams

Calcium  10 (mg)

Iron dose 0.64 mg

Magnesium 27 mg

Phosphorous 75 mg

Potassium 544 mg.

Vitamin B6  0.211 mg

 Vitamin C  12.6 mg

Folate micrograms 35 (mcg)

In addition, potatoes include zinc, choline, and niacin. Various types offer a little bit different nutrition.