5 Reasons Potatoes Don't Deserve Their Bad Reputation

[TampaYankee]

5 Reasons Potatoes Don't Deserve Their Bad Reputation

The Huffington Post | By Sarah Klein

Adam Gault via Getty Images

The potato isn't inherently bad, and, really, it shouldn't be treated as such.

Yes, it's often smothered in cheese, mixed up with mayo, doused in sour cream or deep-fried -- but when it isn't is when the potato truly shines. In its purest, most potato-y (and perhaps organic) form, it actually packs some very real health perks. Here are five very good reasons to love potatoes.

They're loaded with potassium.
One large spud baked with the skin on contains a whopping 1,600 milligrams of potassium, nearly half the recommended amount for an entire day and almost four times as much as a medium banana, famed for its potassium count. Not only is it an essential electrolyte key to hydration and athletic performance, potassium may also play a role in lowering blood pressure.

Potatoes are packed with fiber. If you eat the skin, at least. That same large spud contains 7 grams of dietary fiber, about a quarter of what you should aim for in a day -- but without the skin that fiber count drops to just 1 gram. A diet rich in fiber will not only help you stay fuller for longer (thereby leading to less snacking), it's also been shown to reduce heart attack risk, lower cholesterol and help prevent diabetes.

They've got a hearty dose of vitamin C. Also in the skin of your potato is a solid amount of vitamin C -- you'll nab nearly 29 milligrams of the stuff in a large tater, to be exact, nearly half of your goal for the day, and more than a third of the amount found in famed vitamin C deliverer, the orange. While getting enough C probably won't nip a cold in the bud, it plays an important role as an antioxidant and helps heal wounds.

Potatoes are a good source of manganese.You might be less familiar with this nutrient, but that doesn't mean you don't need it.Manganese plays an essential role in processing protein, carbs and cholesterol and may also be involved in bone formation, according to WebMD. One large potato with the skin on contains 33 percent of your recommended daily amount of manganese.

And they're rich in vitamin B6. This vitamin does much of its work "behind the scenes," American Dietetic Association spokesperson Dee Sandquist, MS, RD, CD, told Everyday Health, but it's working hard, in the cardiovascular, digestive, immune, muscular and nervous systems. It also produces essential brain hormones, the website reported. With 46 percent of your daily recommended B6, a potato (with the skin!) is a good place to start.

[AdamSmith]

In the context of this forum, manganese sounds positively erotic.

[TampaYankee]

In the context of this forum, manganese sounds positively erotic.

I believe that is a language understood only by men.

[AdamSmith]

[AdamSmith]

(Whoops, double post.)

[Lucky]

Does not the starch in a potato convert to sugar in the body, thus causing calories and problems for diabetics?

[MsGuy]

Damn near every thing except water and proteins are broken down to sugars at some point in the process. Even proteins can be converted in a pinch but that process is much less energy efficient.

Carbohydrates like starch are mostly long chains of simple sugars. '(Fibers' are extra long carb chains difficult for the digestive process to break down.)

The problem with sugars in food is that they are absorbed so easily that they can cause a spike in blood glucose. Carbs are broken down over a period of hours, resulting in a much more level blood glucose level.

A calorie is just a measure of energy.

[AdamSmith]

[AdamSmith]

[RA1]

I have known folks to drive 88 miles for a Big Mac but I am not one of them.

Yes, potatoes are much maligned. It is mainly the toppings that are "bad" for one. But, what is life without toppings?

Take that any way you wish.

ANYTHING without moderation is by definition bad for one or worse. Therefore, be moderate.

Best regards,

RA1.

[MsGuy]

Trust AdamSmith to find a way to shovel an analysis of horse poop onto TY's innocent post on potatoes.

====

Just out of idle curiosity, AS, what does it mean to collect horse poop in situ as opposed to in vivo? Is the one scooped up off the floor and the other dug out of the horse's rear end? if so, which is which? Apparently it makes a significant difference as far as measurable dry matter and organic matter goes. Neutral detergent fiber and starch, not so much.

And where do they get off feeding detergents to a horse in the first place?

I think you need to let the ASPCA know about this pronto.

[AdamSmith]

Trust AdamSmith to find a way to shovel an analysis of horse poop onto TY's innocent post on potatoes.

I would not have felt bound to do this had your discourse on long-chain fibers not stopped short of its natural next topic: dietary cellulose.

Regarding in situ vs. in vivo poop, one hopes your interpretation is correct, as any conceivable alternative would seem to involve Mr Hankey.

Finally, re: detergent and horses, I don't make the world, I just try to live in it.

Neutral Detergent Fiber (NDF) is the most common measure of fiber used for animal feed analysis, but it does not represent a unique class of chemical compounds. NDF measures most of the structural components in plant cells (i.e. lignin, hemicellulose and cellulose), but not pectin.[1][2][3]

The process involves a neutral detergent that dissolves plant pectins, proteins, sugars and lipids. Thus leaving the fibreous parts behind such as cellulose, lignin and hemicellulose. These parts are not easily digestable, and are often not desired within a feedstuff. [4]

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neutral_Detergent_Fiber

[AdamSmith]