The Truth About Sweet Potato Nutrition You Should Know Before Thanksgiving
Whether you're using sweet potatoes in a fancy holiday dish or just popping one in the oven for a quick after-work dinner, you're getting a veggie with major health superpowers. Sweet potatoes are packed with plenty of minerals, fiber, vitamins, and phytonutrients — they help both your body and mind. Not only that: they're simple to prepare. You can cook sweet potatoes in a variety of ways, from baking to mashing to roasting to air-frying. So don't hesitate to toss 'em into your shopping cart!
Nutrition Facts
Serving Size: 1 medium-size sweet potato
112 calories
0g total fat
0g saturated fat
26g total carbohydrates
4g dietary fiber
5g sugar
2g protein
438 mg potassium (12% DV)
32mg magnesium (8% DV)
39mg calcium (3% DV)
0.8mg iron (3% DV)
3mg vitamin C (5% DV)
0.3mg vitamin B6 (15% DV)
18,443 IU vitamin A (386% DV)
Health Benefits of Sweet Potatoes
Promotes healthy vision: All of that vitamin A helps maintain eyesight and promote healthy vision. Plus, research suggests that greater vitamin A and beta carotene intake intake may be inversely associated with risk for cataract.
Supports immunity: Vitamin A also helps with other bodily functions, including cellular communication, growth, and differentiation. Recent research suggests that it also plays a critical role in enhancing immunity.
May help reduce blood pressure and stroke risk: Sweet potatoes contain both potassium and magnesium, both of which are involved in blood pressure support. Research suggests that potassium-rich diets can help support heart health by reducing blood pressure and even protecting against stroke.
Can lower LDL cholesterol: The healthy plant-based fiber in this veggie can help reduce LDL (aka "bad") cholesterol, as well as decrease risk of heart disease, obesity, and type 2 diabetes.
Promotes longevity: Sweet potatoes with an orange flesh are one of the best sources of beta-carotene, an antioxidant which is a precursor to Vitamin A. Antioxidants like beta-carotene are known to help defend the body against free radicals damage.
Now, get your top questions on sweet potatoes answered.
Are sweet potatoes better for you than white potatoes?
"Both sweet and white potatoes are nutritious," says Registered Dietitian Nutritionist and Co-Founder of Culina Health Vanessa Rissetto MS, RD, CDN. "White potatoes and sweet potatoes are comparable in calorie, protein, and carbohydrate content, but white potatoes are high in potassium while sweet potatoes are high in Vitamin A," she adds. Sweet potatoes also are slightly higher in fiber, but both are fantastic choices and switching it up will help you get the benefits of both.
Are sweet potatoes high in sugar?
This tuber has naturally occurring sugar, but there's no added sugar in sweet potatoes (unless you're adding some during cooking). In fact, sweet potatoes can be an excellent addition to a diabetic diet. It's a common misconception that diabetics must avoid carbohydrates altogether. What matters is the type of carb, portion size, and spreading them throughout the day.
Sweet potatoes are considered a low-glycemic food and high in fiber, which means they release and absorb glucose into the bloodstream very slowly, preventing a spike in blood sugar. But you'll want to be careful with how you prepare them. "Boiled sweet potato has a low glycemic index of 44 but if baked for 45 minutes has a glycemic index of 94," Rissetto notes.
Are sweet potatoes the same as yams?
Although many Americans use the names interchangeably, the two vegetables are in fact not related. Yams are almost exclusively grown in Africa and Asia. Look for a cylindrical shape with a black or brown bark-like skin, as well as white, purple, or reddish flesh. They're drier and starchier than sweet potatoes, and often only found in international supermarkets.
True sweet potatoes are more readily available in U.S. grocery stores. So what's with the name mix-up? There are two main varieties of sweet potatoes grown in the U.S.: white flesh and orange flesh. Apparently, the orange variety only entered the American market several decades ago. In order to differentiate between the two, producers started selling them as yams. Therefore, the orange sweet potatoes are often mislabeled as yams in stores.
Orange, yellow, or purple sweet potatoes: What's the difference?
Studies show that the different colored sweet potatoes may contain varying levels of phytonutrients, the health-promoting chemicals found in plants. For instance, orange sweet potatoes have the highest levels of beta-carotene, a carotenoid with antioxidant activity. On the other hand, purple sweet potatoes have more anthocyanins, the flavonoid found in blueberries. Anthocyanins also have an antioxidant effect and may support healthy brain function. Bottom line: Including a variety of colors in your diet is the way to go!
What you get too much vitamin A?
While it's true that excess levels of pre-formed vitamin A from supplements can lead to a toxicity known as hypervitaminosis A, large amounts of pro-vitamin A carotenoids (i.e., those from fruits and veggies) are NOT associated with major adverse side effects. However, eating excessive amounts of beta-carotene rich foods like carrots can cause a harmless condition called carotenemia, which is characterized by yellow pigmentation of the skin.
In terms of any downsides in eating sweet potatoes, they should be safe to consume for most healthy individuals. "They are high in potassium which could be problematic for people who take beta-blockers," Rissetto adds. If you have kidney disease or suffer from chronic hyperkalemia, sweet potatoes may not be the best choice for you because of their high potassium content.
Are sweet potato fries good for you?
Don't be fooled by tricky menu marketing- sweet potato fries are still fries. Loaded with fat and excess sodium, calories in sweet potato fries from a restaurant can be upwards of 350 for just one cup's worth. Not to mention the practically half your day's worth in salt in that small serving size. The key is to avoid deep-fried varieties. Baked options are much healthier, especially if you slice the potatoes yourself and bake the fries at home.
How should I prepare them?
There are so many delicious ways to reap the benefits of sweet potatoes! When purchasing, select firm tubers (no soft spots) with smooth skin. Store them loose for up to a week in a cool, dry, and dark place — not the fridge, as this can cause their core to harden and create an unpleasant taste when cooked.
Use the spuds in a variety of recipes, including breakfast dishes, casseroles, and even desserts. We love baking a batch of sweet potatoes for the week and adding them to both sweet and savory meals. Rissetto enjoys roasting them with a little olive oil and rosemary, and she adds 1/2 cup to her eggs every day during the colder months of the year. Tip: Keep the sweet potato skin on to maximize the fiber content.
Switch it up and try making:
*Additional reporting by Caroline Walder
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