are potatoes healthy?

[enviroTodd]

Are potatoes actually vegetables? Are they healthy? I don't mean frozen coated fries or something, but potatoes. Like a baked potato for example

[suzieQ]

Yes! They're really full of nutrients and even though I was taught that most of the nutrition is in the skin, the skin is a major source of fiber but the nutrients are actually mostly in the inside. In fact, the closer to the center of the potato, the more nutrients are in there! Cool, right?

[TracyK]

I wouldn't say that they're a superfood, but when you cook them in a healthy way, they do give you a good number of nutrients and fiber. Unless you fry them, they do act like a starchy vegetable.

[Tony1968]

Potatoes have lots of nutrients and fiber, vitamin B6, potassium, manganese, magnesium, folate and others. As other people have mentioned, the key is in how it's cooked. If it's deep fried, the "bad for you" outweighs any nutrient benefit. If you bake, boil, mash, etc, then you're going to get far more of the benefits from the nutrients.

[TammyBear]

Yes, technically. But really if you really are looking for nutrition from a veggie grown underground, you'd do better with beets, carrots or sweet potatoes, for instance, and you can prepare them the same ways as potatoes with even more flavor.

[Donnyy]

Hmm, I always thought potatoes have nothing but starch and sugar... Thanks, now I know I was wrong

[MadMike]

Hmm, I always thought potatoes have nothing but starch and sugar... Thanks, now I know I was wrong

Same! I thought they were fiber and starch. Too bad fries still aren't healthy though

[1000kilowatts]

They're not exactly a superfood, but they have a good amount of nutrition. Good info here at WebMD: https://www.webmd.com/diet/health-benefits-potatoes