[Fox]

What makes sweet potatoes so much better for you than white potatoes? Is it just that they're lower in calories? When I look up the two on fitday white potatoes have more protein and fiber but more calories....

[Glory87]

Check out the color Orange foods (like sweet potatoes, carrots, squash, pumpkin, orange peppers) are rich in betacarotene. Plus, they taste soooo good. They are pretty sweet, when I roast a sweet potato in the oven (400 degrees, 1+ hours) the sugar in the skin caramelizes - delicious!

http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?t...dspice&dbid=64
http://home.howstuffworks.com/sweet-potatoes3.htm
http://www.foodreference.com/html/sw...nutrition.html

CSPI ranked the sweet potato number one in nutrition of all vegetables. With a score of 184, the sweet potato outscored the next highest vegetable by more than 100 points. Points were given for content of dietary fiber, naturally occurring sugars and complex carbohydrates, protein, vitamins A and C, iron and calcium. Points were deducted for fat content (especially saturated fat), sodium, cholesterol, added refined sugars and caffeine. The higher the score, the more nutritious the food. The reasons the sweet potato took first place? Dietary fiber, naturally occurring sugars, complex carbohydrates, protein, vitamins A and C, iron and calcium.

The numbers for the nutritional sweet potato speak for themselves: almost twice the recommended daily allowance of vitamin A, 42 percent of the recommendation for vitamin C, four times the RDA for beta carotene, and, when eaten with the skin, sweet potatoes have more fiber than oatmeal. All these benefits with only about 130 to 160 calories!



I don't have an issue with white potatoes, but I prefer sweet potatoes, they taste better to me and offer more health benefits. As a rule, I try to concentrate on eating the brightest, most colorful foods if I have a choice. Red grapes over green grapes, dark green romaine over iceberg, sweet potatoes over white potatoes, etc etc.

[Ija]

As Glory explained in detail, white potatoes are good for you, but sweet potatoes are LOADED with nutrients. I eat them about twice a week

[Renacer]

Glory, thanks for that interesting information. I feed my son a lot of sweet potatoes, I should start loving them as well.

[WaterRat]

I should start loving them as well

Sweet potatoes are yummy no matter how you fix them!

[digitalrequiem]

Besides the nutritional benefits, I think sweet potatoes have a better natural flavor. I use less fillings on a baked sweet potato. I usually use just a small dab of butter and some cinnamon. Plus I love baked sweet potato fries! I spice them well with things like cumin, paprika, cayenne, etc and they taste so good that I don't even need things like ketchup and salt.

[freakiel]

i have never had sweet potato before. ahh, i need to try that.

[kaplods]

I've never cared for "sweet" vegetables, especially since the way my family made them usually included adding brown sugar to make them even sweeter. However, I find that I really like sweet potatoes dressed more like a baked white potato. So I'll open my sweet potato and add savory toppings like bacon bits (or bacos), diced sweet onion or chives, and sour cream.

[nelie]

I also don't like sweet potatoes sweetened. I like roasted sweet potatoes as is, nothing else needed.

[tommy]

Back in the day, when Jane Fonda was the queen of aerobics workouts, she published a book and noted that half a sweet potato was her dessert substitute when a carving struck (as is- w/o added sugar).

I am also in the camp that finds them sweet enough on their own and like them with dinner or an in ingredient in dinner, but NOT w/ marshmallows, brown sugar, etc. It takes a while when you wean yourself off sugar to realize the natural sweetness in things, but the realization does come if you pay attention and give it a shot.

[in need of solace]

Don't forget you can also eat sweet potatoes raw. Grated up in a salad they are AWESOME!

As long as you're doing some grating, make some sweet potato hash browns as well!

[JulieJ08]

Originally Posted by in need of solace

Don't forget you can also eat sweet potatoes raw. Grated up in a salad they are AWESOME!

As long as you're doing some grating, make some sweet potato hash browns as well!

Interesting. I love sweet potatoes and might really like that - does it cause any intestinal issues raw?

[in need of solace]

Originally Posted by JulieJ08

Interesting. I love sweet potatoes and might really like that - does it cause any intestinal issues raw?

I've never had any problems from them but YMMV. Try a small amount out before "going wild" with them. In a salad, nice crisp slices of a granny smith apple go well with raw sweet potatoes.

[JulieJ08]

Originally Posted by in need of solace

I've never had any problems from them but YMMV. Try a small amount out before "going wild" with them. In a salad, nice crisp slices of a granny smith apple go well with raw sweet potatoes.

Ohhh, I'm all about the bits of granny smith apple in things lately.

[Glory87]

Originally Posted by in need of solace

Don't forget you can also eat sweet potatoes raw. Grated up in a salad they are AWESOME!

As long as you're doing some grating, make some sweet potato hash browns as well!

I've grated them and used them as a filling for quesadillas. Grated sweet potatoes, cumin, cayenne, onion, garlic (sauteed) and a little sharp cheddar cheese to stick everything together. Topped with salsa - it's pretty great.