Sweet potatoes are from the C_onvolvulaceae_ family and unlike white potatoes, you can eat the leaves of sweet potatoes, which are very nutritious. So in case you've ever been tempted, take care not to substitute a sweet potato for an Idaho willy nilly; in some cases it may work … “The skin has a little bit more of the fiber and iron specifically,” says Gans. Sweet potatoes are also loaded with potassium and vitamin B6. So should you opt for white or sweet potatoes? Japanese sweet potatoes, on the other hand, are reliable in their ability to brown and char: If you're going to make sweet potato oven fries, look no further. Sweet potatoes and russet potato contain similar amounts of sugar - sweet potato has 4.2g of sugar per 100 grams and russet potato has 0.62g of sugar. Here’s how these tubers compare — and why both deserve a place in your diet. ), The starch in potatoes is a resistant starch, which helps regulate blood-sugar levels and contributes to satiety. "Eating a diet rich in antioxidants has been shown to decrease risk for chronic diseases," she says. You may be wondering if there are more carbs in sweet potatoes as opposed to white potatoes and what the nutritional differences are between the two. You should probably be eating a sweet potato right now. This content is created and maintained by a third party, and imported onto this page to help users provide their email addresses. But are sweet potatoes truly healthier than potatoes? Potatoes are a fabulous source of fiber and nutrients (especially if you eat the skin). The paler-skinned sweet potato has a thin, light yellow skin and pale yellow flesh. The color largely determines how much beta carotene is in a sweet tuber, she adds: A brighter, deeper orange hue signals more of the nutrient, which your body turns into vitamin A. Sweet potatoes and potatoes also contain dietary fiber, indigestible carbohydrate that helps you feel full after a meal. Test the texture. Let's get to the bottom of this never-ending debate. Sweet potatoes vs. potatoes: A nutritional debate fueled by misinformation, baseless ‘superfood’ obsessions, and carbohydrate phobias. Orange Sweet Potato is produced in massive amounts all over the world while White Sweet Potato are not the readily available. That doesn't mean you have to eat them raw. Sweet potatoes are highest and purple potatoes are considerably lower than sweet potatoes or Russets. (Sorry, loaded baked potato fans.) You may be able to find more information about this and similar content at piano.io, This Ground Beef 'Hack' Is Going Viral On TikTok, ‘Jarcuterie’ Is Your Personal Charcuterie Board, 50 Foods the World’s Healthiest Women Eat Daily, What New Mom Katherine Schwarzenegger Eats, Mindy Kaling Loves Baking With Her Daughter, You Need A Charcuterie Wreath For Christmas Day, What Gal Gadot Ate To Get In 'Wonder Woman' Shape. Instead, opt for some baked sweet potato fries with olive oil or a lightened-up sweet potato gratin. Please note though, the type of vitamin A is betacarotene, and only a small percentage is actually converted to retinol, the usable form of vitamin A. Current popular sweet potato varieties include Goldrush, … A post shared by whatsgabycookin (@whatsgabycookin). Sweet potatoes are actually fairly similar to white potatoes in terms of calories and carbs. For starters, a sweet potato isn't a potato at all, meaning it's not a member of the Solanum tuberosum potato family from which French fries, mashed potatoes, and latkes are made; their composition of simple sugars and complex starches are quite different. A yam … The way you prepare your potatoes will determine how nutritious they are, but all types of potatoes can be a healthy source of fiber and essential nutrients when prepared and served with little or no added fat. Each potato variation has different vitamins and minerals. “Purple potatoes have different phytonutrients, which have been shown to lower blood pressure,” says Angelone. On today's episode of Live Lean TV, I'm comparing the sweet potato vs white potato and answering the question: are white potatoes good for you? Sweet potatoes typically have brown skin and orange flesh but also come in purple, yellow, and red varieties. Also note: sweet potatoes aren’t yams. And while sweet potatoes contain more vitamin A and vitamin C, white potatoes contain more protein and fiber. There are about 4,000 known varieties of white potatoes and about 1,000 more varieties of sweet potatoes grown worldwide. But back then, the sweet potato … If you’re trying to figure out if what you’re eating is a sweet potato … First introduced to the U.S. many decades ago, sweet potatoes have a naturally sweet taste (hence the name). While both potatoes are rich in vitamin C, copper, vitamin B6, fiber, and potassium, potatoes are ahead in manganese, and sweet potatoes are ahead in iron. Like a regular potato, the tuberous roots of the sweet potato plant are eaten as a vegetable. Regardless of the type, both potatoes are rich in carbohydrates and fiber. What is it? This content is imported from Instagram. ( 1 ) Sweet potatoes (Ipomoea batatas) are in the Convolvulaceae family with flowering morning glory vines. “Starch can be a concentrated source of calories, and it is important to avoid eating more calories from starch or any other food than you burn through activity and exercise, if you want to avoid weight gain.”. They are sweet and starchy and grown and consumed across the world. And why is it so good for you? These are the sweet potatoes that you roast for meal prep, use for Thanksgiving sweet potato pie or marshmallow-topped mashed potatoes, and … Both potatoes are a healthy carbohydrate source. "I wouldn’t be concerned at all about the sugar in any potato- it is naturally occurring not added!" Sweet potatoes have swooped in as a trendy tater alternative, and … Potato: Their Origins and History They come in a wide variety of colours, including white, purple and orange and can also range in size. Click here to download the infographic and print it out, or save it on your tablet. Women's Health participates in various affiliate marketing programs, which means we may get paid commissions on editorially chosen products purchased through our links to retailer sites. Sweet potatoes are also lower on the glycemic index, meaning that they are less likely than regular potatoes to make your blood sugar spike. Plus, potatoes actually top the satiety index (a handy measure of how full people feel after eating specific foods) as the number-one most filling food. Potatoes are practical and delish, but they've gotten a bit of a bad rap, nutritionally speaking. Both contain vitamins with a head-to-toe impact and are covered in fiber-rich skin. Both sweet potatoes and white potatoes are found in the middle of the chart for glycemic load ranging from 8 for mashed white potatoes to 17 for a baked potato, and sweet potatoes are found right in the middle at 10 for baked and 11 for boiled. Sweet potatoes are considered a root vegetable. Normani Is More Confident Than Ever Before, Filters, FaceTune, And Your Mental Health, ‘Fitness Helped Me Find Joy After Losing My Leg’, Insanely Good: Guilt-Free Sweet Potato Fries, Try Natalie Morales' Healthy Mac And Cheese Recipe. Different types of potatoes … “Just because a food has starch, that certainly doesn’t make it unhealthy. Check out this infographic to learn more about white and sweet potatoes, and why you should consider including both in your diet. (You can even download them for you printer or tablet). White potatoes score the highest at 75. Light-colored spuds, like russet potatoes, have plenty of vitamins, too. Potatoes are practical and delish, but they've gotten a bit of a bad rap, nutritionally speaking. It's not sweet and has a dry, crumbly texture similar to a white baking potato. says Gans. The shade thrown at brown potatoes is typically for their higher rank on the glycemic index and greater amount of starch. Get life-changing resources delivered right to your inbox. The darker-skinned variety (which is most often and incorrectly called a yam) has a thicker, dark orange to reddish skin with a sweet, vivid orange flesh and a moist texture. One group compared the glycemic index and load of sweet potatoes vs. potatoes. Is Almond Butter Healthier Than Peanut Butter. “If you are solely looking for vitamin A, then a sweet potato is your pick, hands down,” says Gans. Sweet potatoes are misunderstood to be healthier than regular potatoes since there is a lack of awareness about the differences and similarities in the nutritional profiles. Baked, roasted, mashed, added to chili or pureed into soup – adding sweet potatoes to … While white potatoes are lower in fat and sugar, calories and carbs in a sweet potato are lower. In this health food face off, find out which is healthier: a white potato or a sweet potato. Surprisingly, sweet potatoes are only remotely related to potatoes. ... Sweet potatoes have 10% of recommended vitamin A, as well as vitamin C, B6, potassium, and manganese." Sweet potatoes have a medium-to-high GI, around 60, and yams have a lower GI at about 50. By providing your email, you agree to our. “A medium white potato has about 2 grams more per serving of protein than a sweet potato,” says Gans. Sweet Potato vs White Potato. The solution: Don’t overcook potatoes. While many of the vitamins and minerals are concentrated in the flesh, the skin has benefits, too. They suggested that since white potatoes tend to be higher, they should be avoided. Regular potatoes come in shades of brown, yellow, and red and have white or … Women's Health may earn commission from the links on this page, but we only feature products we believe in. And you should be seeking out the nutrient: “Vitamin A may help keep your skin, bones, and eyes healthy," Gans adds. Sweet potatoes, however, have more fiber and are slightly lower on the glycemic index than white potatoes. If you put sweet potatoes and potatoes in the ring and let them duke it out, it would be a fair fight. “Sweet potatoes have several health benefits, including anti-inflammatory nutrients and blood sugar-regulating nutrients,” says Angelone. “Basically, starch is a concentrated source of glucose, which gets broken down for energy and stored in your muscles as glycogen, or turned into fat,” says Angelone. The bottom line: While sweet potatoes have a slight edge on white potatoes because they contain more antioxidants, both options are nutrition-packed picks—as long as you don't fry them. Sweet potatoes have swooped in as a trendy tater alternative, and so began the sweet potato vs. potato health debate. White potatoes do come out ahead on protein content, though. Unlike potatoes, you can also eat the leaves of sweet potatoes, which are very nutritious. Both white and sweet potatoes, when eaten as part of a balanced and intentional diet, provide a fantastic array of nutrients while contributing to the satiety and deliciousness of any meal. Another group suggested that sweet potatoes are a vitamin A ‘superfood’, putting them way ahead of their white potato competitors. The Orange Sweet Potatoes are harder in nature while the White Sweet Potato is very soft in nature. What you do or don't do with spuds in the kitchen can actually negate all those health benefits in both sweet potatoes and potatoes. Also, Angelone recommends pairing sweet potatoes with a little fat to help your body absorb more of the all-star antioxidant beta carotene. “They do get a bad rap, but I believe that it is unfounded,” says Gans. Plus, white potatoes have slightly less sugar than sweet potatoes as expected, but that's NBD. Overall, based on nutritional facts, the sweet potato comes out on top as the winner in potato versus potato, even though it does have a higher sugar content and lower potassium values. One group compared the glycemic index and load of sweet potatoes vs. potatoes. And, of course, the carbophobes had their own take: All potatoes should be avoided because they’re too high in carbs and all those carbs will mess with your insulin regulation and cause fat gain. Vitamins Sweet potatoes are loaded with vitamin A, packing almost 700% of the recommended daily value in one medium potato; all the others have none. “Steaming or boiling sweet potatoes seem to preserve the nutrients,” says Angelone. What is a Sweet Potato? That's not an excuse to pile on the sour cream and butter, though. It takes 50% less time to make white sweet potatoes as compared to orange ones and also have a softer peel. A few years back, some nutrition enthusiasts decided to figure out whether white or sweet potatoes were “healthier”. Want to share this with family, friends, and clients? Click here to download the infographic and print it out, or save it on your tablet. What’s The Difference Between Ghee and Butter? Save up to 30% on the Precision Nutrition Level 1 Certification. For an even more comprehensive take on this topic, check out our accompanying article, “Sweet vs. regular potatoes: Which are really healthier?”. Some popular potato cooking methods, like frying, can diminish the heat-sensitive phytochemicals in the spuds. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site. It is the clear choice … Sweet potatoes also contain more antioxidants, including vitamins A and C, than regular potatoes. Both types of taters are healthy in their own right, and sweet potatoes and potatoes are very similar on nutrition stats. It is in the percentage or quantity of antioxidants that sweet potatoes are much ahead of potatoes. Keri Gans, MS, RDN, nutrition consultant and author of The Small Change Diet, and Sonya Angelone, MS, RDN, spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, get to the root of this dietary dilemma. *Required. The potato is hardier, able to be grown in various climates and soil types, while the sweet potato is unable to tolerate frost and is more sensitive to daylight. Commonly, the potatoes sold to consumers have coats appearing in shades of brown or red and white flesh, while sweet potatoes generally have rougher brown coats with orange flesh. As a result, you won’t have to add as much butter, oil, or cream in order to enjoy them, says Bauer. If you’d like to learn more about both, consider the Precision Nutrition Level 1 Certification. You'll be the first to receive updates about new resources and exclusive products. They suggested that since white potatoes tend to be higher, they should be avoided. Why trust us? Learning how to coach clients, patients, friends, or family members through healthy eating and lifestyle changes—in a way that’s personalized for their unique body, preferences, and circumstances—is both an art and a science. There are two main types of sweet potatoes, both of which are elongated yellow or orange tubers that taper to a point at each end. Angelone says sweet potatoes may have a slight edge on potatoes due to the antioxidant beta carotene. Sweet potatoes are a fantastic source of vitamins and minerals – especially vitamin A. But sweet potatoes have a slight edge on fiber and really shine on vitamins A and C. They also tend to be more expensive than white potatoes. True yams are another type of tuber (genus Dioscorea). “White potatoes meet more than 10% of the recommended daily allowance for vitamin C, B6, folate, niacin, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, and manganese,” says Gans. Sweet potatoes originated in North America, first joining market shelves alongside the white potato as far back as the late 1600s. In fact, a medium potato contains twice as much potassium as a medium banana. “The vitamin C content of potatoes will decrease since vitamin C is sensitive to heat and will degrade with higher temperatures,” says Angelone. Both come in colors ranging from white to orange to purple. “Vitamin A is important for eye health, vitamin C for a healthy immune system, B6 is needed for metabolism and our nervous system, and potassium is associated with regulating blood pressure,” says Gans. A sweet potato has tapered ends and thin, smooth skin and flesh that can range from light beige to burnished orange to purplish, even. Sweet potatoes also have about twice the vitamin C of Russet Burbank and red potatoes. Nutrients in a Sweet Potato Vs. a Regular Potato Vs. a Red Skin Potato. Potatoes are a starch, which may give you a knee-jerk negative reaction—but it's time to get over that once and for all, according to the nutritionists I spoke with. So, when looking at all three types of potatoes, gram for gram, white potatoes will cause a sharper spike in blood sugar when eaten. The skin also helps preserve the vitamins that can leach out during boiling—yet another reason to leave it on. 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