Confession: I love potatoes.
Mashed, baked, boiledthey are the ultimate comfort food.
But are they healthy?
Yanni Vlamos / Indigitalimages.com
Is it okay to eat them every day?
And, if so, what is the best way to cook them?
Read on to find out what I discovered.
Spoiler: Potatoes are another one of thosefoods that are healthier than you think.
They are seen as fattening and fundamentally unhealthy.
In fact, the exact opposite is true.
Pasta and rice, on the other hand, have 150 calories per 100 grams.
In addition, potatoes contain lots of nutrients.
These are super important for the heart, but also for the bones.
Magnesium in particular is also involved in all metabolic processes.
Potatoes also contain many phytochemicals, i.e.
flavonoids and anthocyanins, which have an antioxidant effect," explains Mensching.
This means that they slow down or inhibit oxidation that contributes to inflammation and the development of cancer.
According to Mensching, the macronutrients in potatoes are also completely underestimated.
Of course potatoes contain carbohydrates, she says.
To be precise, there are 21 grams of carbohydrates per 100 grams of potatoes.
But what many people dont know is that potatoes also containprotein.
Potatoes also contain no fatthey are mostly just water.
One of the most commonly prescribed types of medications are so-called ACE inhibitors.
They inhibit the angiotensin-converting enzyme, which plays a decisive role in high blood pressure.
And potatoes contain peptide concentrates that can allegedly also inhibit this enzyme.
However, this has not yet been finally confirmed.
There shouldnt be too much water in the pot either to keep the beneficial ingredients from being cooked out.
Cooking potatoes in a pressure cooker is even better than cooking them in a traditional saucepan.
This is done using steam and almost no nutrients are lost.
A baked potato with the skin on is also great for preserving nutrients.
If you leave the potatoes to cool for 12-24 hours after cooking, so-called resistant starch is created.
This means the starch can no longer be broken down in the small intestine.
As a result, fewer calories are absorbed.
However, resistant starch isnt all badits actuallyfood for our good intestinal bacteria, like Lactic acid bacteria.
Butyric acid also lowers our total blood fat level, i.e.
our cholesterol level, and also helps us lose weight.
Trans fats, additives etc.
rationalize away the positive properties, says Mensching.
Potatoes are much healthier than most people think.
Will I be eating them more often?
In fact, I now have potato salad for lunch regularly.
I pre-cook the potatoes the night before.
That way I spread the workand benefit from the resistant starch.
