Potatoes and Vegetable Serving

aufond
aufond Posts: 18 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Do you eat much in the way of potatoes? I love making hash browns for breakfast! It's my understanding that we should eat at least five servings of vegetables per day, but for some reason it's in my head that potatoes are on the "indulgent" side, they're not as good for you as other vegetables. So if you're counting your vegetable servings in a day, do you count potatoes? Or do you avoid them altogether?
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Replies

  • cwsreddy
    cwsreddy Posts: 998 Member
    Do you eat much in the way of potatoes? I love making hash browns for breakfast! It's my understanding that we should eat at least five servings of vegetables per day, but for some reason it's in my head that potatoes are on the "indulgent" side, they're not as good for you as other vegetables. So if you're counting your vegetable servings in a day, do you count potatoes? Or do you avoid them altogether?

    I love potatoes, but yes they're starches - a "white" carb - and very high in [fast burning] carbs. So while yes, they count as veggies, they aren't green and have a more similar profile to bread and pasta in how they're absorbed and metabolized by the body. You just have to be smart about it and - as with everything - not overdo it. A well rounded mixture of different types of veggies of all colors is generally your best bet.

    fyi - sweet potatoes are "better" than regular potatoes in this regards (fewer calories, carbs, more fiber, vitamins, etc)
  • neanderthin
    neanderthin Posts: 10,224 Member
    Do you eat much in the way of potatoes? I love making hash browns for breakfast! It's my understanding that we should eat at least five servings of vegetables per day, but for some reason it's in my head that potatoes are on the "indulgent" side, they're not as good for you as other vegetables. So if you're counting your vegetable servings in a day, do you count potatoes? Or do you avoid them altogether?
    Potatoes are a fabulous carb source full of nutrients, and contrary to the comment that their high in simple carbs, well no, the exact opposite actually, and their the most satiating food source on the planet....eat your potatoes.
  • cwsreddy
    cwsreddy Posts: 998 Member
    Do you eat much in the way of potatoes? I love making hash browns for breakfast! It's my understanding that we should eat at least five servings of vegetables per day, but for some reason it's in my head that potatoes are on the "indulgent" side, they're not as good for you as other vegetables. So if you're counting your vegetable servings in a day, do you count potatoes? Or do you avoid them altogether?
    Potatoes are a fabulous carb source full of nutrients, and contrary to the comment that their high in simple carbs, well no, the exact opposite actually, and their the most satiating food source on the planet....eat your potatoes.

    Potatoes are listed rather highly on the glycemic index charts. Care to substantiate your claim?
  • neanderthin
    neanderthin Posts: 10,224 Member
    Do you eat much in the way of potatoes? I love making hash browns for breakfast! It's my understanding that we should eat at least five servings of vegetables per day, but for some reason it's in my head that potatoes are on the "indulgent" side, they're not as good for you as other vegetables. So if you're counting your vegetable servings in a day, do you count potatoes? Or do you avoid them altogether?
    Potatoes are a fabulous carb source full of nutrients, and contrary to the comment that their high in simple carbs, well no, the exact opposite actually, and their the most satiating food source on the planet....eat your potatoes.

    Potatoes are listed rather highly on the glycemic index charts. Care to substantiate your claim?
    About what?
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    Do you eat much in the way of potatoes? I love making hash browns for breakfast! It's my understanding that we should eat at least five servings of vegetables per day, but for some reason it's in my head that potatoes are on the "indulgent" side, they're not as good for you as other vegetables. So if you're counting your vegetable servings in a day, do you count potatoes? Or do you avoid them altogether?
    Potatoes are a fabulous carb source full of nutrients, and contrary to the comment that their high in simple carbs, well no, the exact opposite actually, and their the most satiating food source on the planet....eat your potatoes.

    This^^^^...potatoes have quite a bit to offer nutritionally, especially if you leave the peel on. They are an outstanding source of energy...I eat them 3-4 nights per week and my Sunday breakfast always includes potatoes as that is my long ride day and the potatoes give me a nice long energy burn. They're also an excellent source of potassium which helps to keep me from cramping up on my ride.
  • FlaxMilk
    FlaxMilk Posts: 3,452 Member
    Count them as vegetables, just don't depend on them for your only vegetable serving, which you wouldn't do for any vegetable anyway. Poor potatoes get a bad reputation.
  • cwsreddy
    cwsreddy Posts: 998 Member
    Do you eat much in the way of potatoes? I love making hash browns for breakfast! It's my understanding that we should eat at least five servings of vegetables per day, but for some reason it's in my head that potatoes are on the "indulgent" side, they're not as good for you as other vegetables. So if you're counting your vegetable servings in a day, do you count potatoes? Or do you avoid them altogether?
    Potatoes are a fabulous carb source full of nutrients, and contrary to the comment that their high in simple carbs, well no, the exact opposite actually, and their the most satiating food source on the planet....eat your potatoes.

    Potatoes are listed rather highly on the glycemic index charts. Care to substantiate your claim?
    About what?

    Ah I see, you took my misspeak at calling them simple carbs and tried to infer that they're.... what? not fast burning and insulin spike inducing? they're high GI and GL foods. They're not BAD and I love to eat them myself - almost daily - but lets call a potato a potato.

    To clarify, they're not categorized as simple sugars but they are white carbs that are higher on the glycemic index. My bad.
  • neanderthin
    neanderthin Posts: 10,224 Member
    Do you eat much in the way of potatoes? I love making hash browns for breakfast! It's my understanding that we should eat at least five servings of vegetables per day, but for some reason it's in my head that potatoes are on the "indulgent" side, they're not as good for you as other vegetables. So if you're counting your vegetable servings in a day, do you count potatoes? Or do you avoid them altogether?
    Potatoes are a fabulous carb source full of nutrients, and contrary to the comment that their high in simple carbs, well no, the exact opposite actually, and their the most satiating food source on the planet....eat your potatoes.

    Potatoes are listed rather highly on the glycemic index charts. Care to substantiate your claim?
    About what?

    Ah I see, you took my misspeak at calling them simple carbs and tried to infer that they're.... what? not fast burning and insulin spike inducing? they're high GI and GL foods. They're not BAD and I love to eat them myself - almost daily - but lets call a potato a potato.

    To clarify, they're not categorized as simple sugars but they are white carbs that are higher on the glycemic index. My bad.
    I don't have a problem with someone saying they're high on the glycemic index, or they're white,even though some aren't, it's the fact that you said they were high in simple carbs, which couldn't be further from the truth. Having a prejudice against white food and simple carbs is fine, we all can't think the same way.
  • cwsreddy
    cwsreddy Posts: 998 Member
    I don't have a problem with someone saying they're high on the glycemic index, or they're white,even though some aren't, it's the fact that you said they were high in simple carbs, which couldn't be further from the truth. Having a prejudice against white food and simple carbs is fine, we all can't think the same way.

    You're reading what you want to read. Multiple times I've said I love potatoes. Where's the prejudice? I can't like something and understand what it is at the same time?
  • neanderthin
    neanderthin Posts: 10,224 Member
    I don't have a problem with someone saying they're high on the glycemic index, or they're white,even though some aren't, it's the fact that you said they were high in simple carbs, which couldn't be further from the truth. Having a prejudice against white food and simple carbs is fine, we all can't think the same way.

    You're reading what you want to read. Multiple times I've said I love potatoes. Where's the prejudice? I can't like something and understand what it is at the same time?
    They're not a fast burning carbs, again, the exact opposite, just because something is higher GI doesn't necessarily mean it's a bad thing, as you seem to be leading people to believe, barring any medical problems associated with carbs.
  • knra_grl
    knra_grl Posts: 1,566 Member
    I like potatoes - would suggest pre cooking them for your hashbrowns and just use a bit of oil when reheating in the fry pan (I think if you pre-cooked you wouldn't need as much oil in the pan as they will be done faster) - I can totally relate - a breakfast with hashbrowns and eggs is yummy
  • knra_grl
    knra_grl Posts: 1,566 Member
    Count them as vegetables, just don't depend on them for your only vegetable serving, which you wouldn't do for any vegetable anyway. Poor potatoes get a bad reputation.

    ^^^ totally agree - anything eaten in moderation is okay - now if you are eating huge amounts I would rethink it but we have to be able to have the things we like in life :flowerforyou:
  • neanderthin
    neanderthin Posts: 10,224 Member
    I like potatoes - would suggest pre cooking them for your hashbrowns and just use a bit of oil when reheating in the fry pan (I think if you pre-cooked you wouldn't need as much oil in the pan as they will be done faster) - I can totally relate - a breakfast with hashbrowns and eggs is yummy

    images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRH6vOxwDLYBGfmdWizv1qA7EVDDLT7vsbx62A3i5DOBR79cZXR
  • cwsreddy
    cwsreddy Posts: 998 Member
    neanderthin please point to where I said potatoes are bad.
  • KatherinesRiver
    KatherinesRiver Posts: 128
    I am eating potatoes. Sweet potatoes steamed or the red potatoes in the microwave. They are so good in cold weather. Must watch the calories. I only use one cup of each.:drinker:
  • njitaliana
    njitaliana Posts: 814 Member
    In dieting terms, potatoes are considered a starch, not a vegetable. Same for corn. 1/2 cup of potatoes is a serving. And if you fry them with oil, you need to count the calories in the oil you use, too.
  • neanderthin
    neanderthin Posts: 10,224 Member
    neanderthin please point to where I said potatoes are bad.
    I never said you said they were bad. Your facts just weren't correct and seemed to be slanted to give the opinion that they might not be the best source for a carb, and I think you thought them being white has some relevance considering you said that sweet potatoes had less carbs and calories, which also isn't true, they have more and the vitamin content is similar.
  • cwsreddy
    cwsreddy Posts: 998 Member
    neanderthin please point to where I said potatoes are bad.
    I never said you said they were bad. Your facts just weren't correct and seemed to be slanted to give the opinion that they might not be the best source for a carb, and I think you thought them being white has some relevance considering you said that sweet potatoes had less carbs and calories, which also isn't true, they have more and the vitamin content is similar.

    http://health.clevelandclinic.org/2013/03/white-potatoes-vs-sweet-potatoes-which-is-healthier/

    Cleveland Clinic re: Potatoes
  • FlaxMilk
    FlaxMilk Posts: 3,452 Member
    OP, I forgot to mention that one reason potatoes got a bad reputation is because at some point (not sure if current), Americans # 1 source of vegetable was the french fry. There's nothing wrong with including some french fries, but for obvious reasons, we don't want our day to day majority to of our veggies to be french fries. Well, we do, but we shouldn't.
  • zyxst
    zyxst Posts: 9,149 Member
    Eat your potatoes. Enjoy them. My family left Ireland in search of potatoes, so you can trust me. :wink:
  • 4mricandy
    4mricandy Posts: 159 Member
    What would Mr. PotatoHead say?
  • lorim200
    lorim200 Posts: 38 Member
    I love potatoes in all forms. I have them almost every night, Mashed usually in the winter. I count the calories from the amount I eat as 3 servings (I told you I liked them). They haven't hurt my weight loss at all.:smile:
  • cwsreddy
    cwsreddy Posts: 998 Member
    Just made my own sweet potato fries with coconut oil and a seasoning mix. so yummy.
  • neanderthin
    neanderthin Posts: 10,224 Member
    neanderthin please point to where I said potatoes are bad.
    I never said you said they were bad. Your facts just weren't correct and seemed to be slanted to give the opinion that they might not be the best source for a carb, and I think you thought them being white has some relevance considering you said that sweet potatoes had less carbs and calories, which also isn't true, they have more and the vitamin content is similar.

    http://health.clevelandclinic.org/2013/03/white-potatoes-vs-sweet-potatoes-which-is-healthier/


    That would be great if the info was correct but it's not. We are nitpicking here because both are great but potatoes have more vitamin C and don't know where they got their calories or carb numbers but you can check with the USDA source instead of opinion. The potato has both fewer calories and fewer carbs, and less than half of the sugar, which isn't much but they seem to use it as a told you so kinda statement.

    http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/vegetables-and-vegetable-products/2546/2 Potato

    http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/vegetables-and-vegetable-products/2666/2 Sweet Potato
  • rejectuf
    rejectuf Posts: 487 Member
    Double check your links. I agree that potatos and sweet potatos are pretty close nutritionally, but when you change the serving to 100g for each the differences aren't what you posted.

    Potatoes and sweet potatoes are close to identical in their nutritional data, with the exception of sweet potatoes super high vitamin A content.
  • neanderthin
    neanderthin Posts: 10,224 Member
    Double check your links. I agree that potatos and sweet potatos are pretty close nutritionally, but when you change the serving to 100g for each the differences aren't what you posted.

    Potatoes and sweet potatoes are close to identical in their nutritional data, with the exception of sweet potatoes super high vitamin A content.
    Not quite sure I know what you mean.
    100g's of raw potato with skin has 77 calories and 18G's of carbs
    100 g's of sweet potato raw has 86 calories and 20g's of carbs

    I also never gave any numbers, only saying that potatoes had less calories and carbs.
  • dakotababy
    dakotababy Posts: 2,407 Member
    Stop the madness! Everything in MODERATION!
  • rejectuf
    rejectuf Posts: 487 Member
    Double check your links. I agree that potatos and sweet potatos are pretty close nutritionally, but when you change the serving to 100g for each the differences aren't what you posted.

    Potatoes and sweet potatoes are close to identical in their nutritional data, with the exception of sweet potatoes super high vitamin A content.
    Not quite sure I know what you mean.
    100g's of raw potato with skin has 77 calories and 18G's of carbs
    100 g's of sweet potato raw has 86 calories and 20g's of carbs

    I also never gave any numbers, only saying that potatoes had less calories and carbs.

    For whatever reason, when I copy & pasted your links, they had different servings which made the difference bigger. Once adjusted, they are super similar (I think we can both agree 9 calories and 2g of carbs are fairly meaningless. Might just be my browser being odd.
  • neanderthin
    neanderthin Posts: 10,224 Member
    Double check your links. I agree that potatos and sweet potatos are pretty close nutritionally, but when you change the serving to 100g for each the differences aren't what you posted.

    Potatoes and sweet potatoes are close to identical in their nutritional data, with the exception of sweet potatoes super high vitamin A content.
    Not quite sure I know what you mean.
    100g's of raw potato with skin has 77 calories and 18G's of carbs
    100 g's of sweet potato raw has 86 calories and 20g's of carbs

    I also never gave any numbers, only saying that potatoes had less calories and carbs.

    For whatever reason, when I copy & pasted your links, they had different servings which made the difference bigger. Once adjusted, they are super similar (I think we can both agree 9 calories and 2g of carbs are fairly meaningless. Might just be my browser being odd.
    Yeah, definitely meaningless. But that's kind of the point. It seems when something is repeated enough people just believe it and this thread is a good example . There's nothing derogatory about a potato and nothing special about the sweet potato......I suspect that this type of nonsense will only get worse for the poor spud.
  • ColetteM6
    ColetteM6 Posts: 138 Member
    A life without potatoes is no life at all. I keep it to 1/2 russet per day (or equivalent of other colors shapes etc). And as of yet, have not run out of ways to prepare said spuds! I count it as a veggie, but keep the other, inferior starches to a minimum. :drinker:

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