If You Love To Eat Potatoes, Go For Sweet Potatoes: Here Are 10 Reasons Why They Are Considered A Su

Have a look at the many health benefits that sweet potatoes provide us with, once you start including them regularly.

By Shubham Ghosh

Thursday, October 27, 2016, 11:12

Sweet potato is an excellent nutritional vegetable which adds a great value to our diet. It's so beneficial for our health that one is always advised to opt for this vegetable over the traditional potato, overconsumption of which can cause us health problems.

Sweet potato belongs to the Convolvulaceae family. It is starchy and has a sweet taste. If you are looking for reasons to eat this superfood, here we give you at least 10 of them.

What are you waiting for? Have a look at these benefits that sweet potatoes provide us with and include them in your diet, today!

1. Nutritious:

Sweet potato, to describe in one word, is a powerhouse of nutrients. It contains vitamins A, B and C besides fibre, iron and potassium. Vitamin A (in the form of beta-carotene) in sweet potatoes helps in providing good health, skin health, bone formation, cell growth and proper immune system.

It's an excellent antioxidant. Vitamin C also betters the immune system and prevents the occurrence of illnesses. Magnesium in sweet potatoes helps in destressing and relaxation as well as in keeping the nerves, arteries and bones properly functional, while potassium prevents muscle cramps and boosts the kidneys' activities.

2. Fat-free Vegetables:

A big advantage with sweet potatoes is that though they contain no fat, yet consuming them will make you feel full, since they contain a high amount of fibre.

3. Anti-inflammatory:

Sweet potatoes are excellent anti-inflammatory vegetables. They contain complex carbohydrates, manganese, vitamins B6 and C, dietary fibre, beta-carotene, etc., and act as powerful antioxidants that help in healing inflammation.

4. Good For Expecting Mothers:

The folate in sweet potatoes helps in the development of the foetus in a mother's womb.

5. Low Glycaemic Index:

Sweet potatoes have a low glycaemic index (GI), which means they increase your blood sugar levels gradually, so that it remains stable after a meal.

However, the GI in sweet potatoes can vary a great deal depending on the way you treat it. While the GI of a 15-g sweet potato boiled with its skin for half-an-hour is 46, it goes up to 94 when it is baked for 45 minutes. So, have them boiled instead of baked.

6. Convenient To Take:

Sweet potatoes can be eaten in any form you like. You can take them baked, boiled, roasted, grilled or even in a soup. In whatever form it is, you will definitely gain nutrients.

7. Improves Digestion:

Since they are rich in dietary fibres, sweet potatoes help in having a good digestive system and bowel movement.

8. Cures Emphysema:

Emphysema is a progressive disease of the lungs, whereby the gradual destruction of the air sacs causes a problem in breathing. For those who have this serious ailment, vitamin A content in sweet potatoes can be a great cure for this.

9. Cure For Stomach Ulcers:

If you are suffering from stomach ulcers, include sweet potatoes in your diet, so that the vitamins and minerals present in them can cure the ailment effectively.