Potato Nutrition Facts

It is wrong to consider potatoes as fattening food. You can avail numerous potato nutritional benefits if you eat potatoes in a correct manner. In fact, potato is a nutritious food item which can improve your health in several ways. Potato is a tuberous crop which grows underground and belongs to the Solanaceae family. It was first discovered in Peru, thousands of years before and now potato turns out to be world's fourth largest crop. Around 5,000 types of potatoes are popular all over the world. The potato nutrition facts, described in the following paragraphs will help assess the potato nutritional value.

If you want to avail all the potato health benefits, you should consume potatoes in right form and proportion. Potatoes are a rich source of vitamin C, vitamin B6, copper and manganese. Potato nutrition facts inform us that potatoes help enhance the functions of the brain. Potatoes are actually low in fats; and 'French fries' are responsible for blacklisting of potatoes by the people. Each one of us loves French fries and baked potatoes. Believe me, potato is nutrients dense food; but a baked potato with a dollop of sour cream and bacon on the side or a huge plate of French fries cannot provide you the required nutrients and can result in uncontrollable weight gain. Instead, if you have mashed potato salad with lots of fresh vegetables, fish or fruits and if you add a little bit of olive oil in it, it will be a nutritious and healthy dish for you. Read more on mashed potatoes nutrition facts. You should keep it in mind that potato nutrition facts vary according to the method of preparation. As I wish from the bottom of my heart that you should eat potatoes, here is a table describing potato nutrition facts.

Potato Nutrition Facts

The following table informs you about the potato nutrition facts and potato calories, present in raw potatoes of different sizes, with the skin.

Size

Approx. Quantity

Calories

Water

Carbs

Dietary Fiber

Fats

Proteins

Vitamin B6

Vitamin C

Mg

P

K

Cu

Mn

1 Small -Dia-1¾" to 2½"

170 g

131

135 g

31.3 g

3.7 g

0.2 g

3.4 g

0.5 mg

33.5 mg

39.1 mg

96.9 mg

716 mg

0.2 mg

0.3 mg

1 Medium, Dia-2¼" to 3¼"

213 g

164

169 g

39.2 g

4.7 g

0.2 g

4.3 g

0.6 mg

42 mg

49 mg

121 mg

897 mg

0.2 mg

0.3 mg

1 Large, Dia-3" to 4¼"

369 g

284

293 g

68 g

8.1 g

0.3 g

7.5 g

1.1 mg

72.7 mg

84.9 mg

210 mg

1554 mg

0.4 mg

0.6 mg

Mg - Magnesium
P - Phosphorous
K - Potassium
Cu - Copper
Mn - Manganese

Here are potato nutritional benefits.

Potato Nutritional Benefits

• Potatoes are recommended to cure intestinal and stomach inflammation. Even those who suffer from mouth ulcers should eat potatoes to get rid of the problem.
• As potatoes are rich in potassium they can keep blood pressure levels under control. Thus they play an important role in controlling and preventing cardiovascular diseases.
• You can directly apply potato to your skin. Potato applied this way or potato ingested is good for the skin. The antioxidants from potatoes can offer you glowing skin. Potatoes protect your skin from pimples and spots.
• Potatoes are packed with vitamin C which can strengthen your immune system. Vitamin C has antioxidant properties and it can help you prevent diseases like scurvy, gout, etc. Vitamin B6 from potatoes is useful for developing new cells in the body. Vitamin A, though present in small amounts in potatoes, can keep you away from some types of cancer.
• Carbohydrates present in potatoes are significant as they keep the glucose levels normal and are responsible for smooth functioning of your brain. As potatoes are rich in vitamin B6, they enhance brain cell activity by helping to produce serotonin, that can keep depression away and melatonin, that can offer good sleep. You don't have to face mood swings as vitamin B6 also helps to produce epinephrine and norepinephrine which guide the body about how to deal successfully with stress.
• If your digestive system is weakened and you are unable to digest hard foods, then it is beneficial to eat potatoes because the rich carbohydrate content in potatoes is easily digestible and you can easily get the required energy from potatoes. Potato is considered as a good source of dietary fibers, which help to improve digestive health. You should include potatoes in your diet so as to make your diet a high fiber diet which can improve food-digestion. The high carbohydrate content, when taken in proper proportion can help you in losing weight also.

I hope this article succeeds in convincing you of the potato nutritional benefits. Taking into consideration the nutrition facts of potatoes, if you start consuming more and more potatoes, it can cause acidity and can lead to an increase in blood glucose levels, which is harmful for diabetic patients. Also excessive consumption of potatoes can result in weight gain and in that case, the power of potatoes to protect your body from heart diseases can be badly affected.

I hope you find the above information about potato nutrition facts helpful. Nutrition experts do recommend potatoes in both weight loss and weight gain diets, depending upon the situation. What matters is the quantity of potatoes and the way you eat potatoes.