People tell me that they know that sweet potatoes are healthier than white potatoes as if it's an accepted fact. Whenever I'm not aware of something that's apparently an established fact, I feel the need to either get caught up on this obvious information or else to find out why this commonly held belief is actually not true.
In order to do this, I decided to do some research.
I needed to find out which potato was actually healthier.
It seemed the easiest way to compare the two types of potatoes was to make a chart to compare them side by side; so here's a handy chart I made to compare the two:
Nutrients... White Potatoes... Sweet Potatoes
Calories... 94... 90
Protein... 2.1g... 2.01g
Carbs... 21.08g... 20.71g
Fiber... 2.1g... 3.3g
Iron... 0.64mg... 0.69mg
Potassium... 544mg... 475mg
Vitamin C... 12.6mg... 19.6mg
Vitamin A... 10 IU... 19,218 IU
Oh, by the way, this is comparing a 100 gram serving of white baked potato with its skin on, to a 100 gram serving of baked sweet potato with its skin on. This information is from the USDA website (Basic Report, Potatoes, white), (Basic Report, Sweet).
You have to be really careful if you're trying to compare these two types of potatoes by the size of the actual whole potato because a medium sized sweet potato weighs 114 grams and a medium sized white potato weights 173 grams. Instead of using size to compare, it's better to use weight.
Breaking it down:
Let's start with the two numbers people want to know first: calories and carbs. As you can see, the calories are almost identical. There are about 3500 calories in a pound of stored body fat so a difference of 4 calories isn't going to matter much either way. How about carbs? One gram of carbohydrates equals about 4 calories, so again, either potato will give you about the same amount.
Now here are the two biggest differences. The first is potassium. If you think of potassium, you probably think of bananas. Well, get this: 100 grams of banana has 358 mg of potassium. Sweet potatoes top bananas with 475 mg of potassium and white potatoes go a step higher with 544 mg! However, most people get enough potassium just from eating a variety of healthy foods so you'll probably get enough of this vital mineral without having to rely on eating potatoes all the time.
And now for the biggie! Vitamin A! What an incredible difference between white potato's 10 IU of vitamin A and sweet potato's 19,218 IU of vitamin A! What does vitamin A do, exactly? It supports your growth and development, helps your immune system, and aids your eye health/night vision. You know how you're supposed to eat carrots for night vision? Well, 100 grams of boiled carrots has 17,033 IU of vitamin A, so it actually has less than sweet potatoes. But before you put them on your list of foods to eat every day, here's something you should know. Most people already get enough vitamin A just from eating a variety of healthy foods. So, with both potassium and vitamin A, if you eat healthy foods, you should be getting all the nutrients you need without having to resort to eating huge amounts of either type of potato. (Vitamin A and Bone Health, 2012).
The Bottom Line:
The calorie, carb, and protein amounts are almost the same in both potatoes. While white potatoes have more potassium and sweet potatoes have more vitamin A, you can get sufficient amounts of these nutrients from eating other healthy foods too. So, don't worry about which one to choose. Both of these potatoes are healthy! Enjoy them both.
References:
NIH Osteoporosis and Related Bone Diseases. (2012, January). Vitamin A and Bone Health. Retrieved from http://www.niams.nih.gov/Health_Info/Bone/Bone_Health/Nutrition/vitamin_a.asp
USDA. Basic Report: 11357, Potatoes, white, flesh and skin, baked. Retrieved from http://ndb.nal.usda.gov/ndb/foods/show/3132?fg=&man=&lfacet=&format=&count=&max=25&offset=25&sort=&qlookup=potatoes
USDA. Basic Report: 11508, Sweet potato, cooked, baked in skin, without salt. Retrieved from ndb.nal.usda.gov/ndb/foods/show/3255?fg=&man=&lfacet=&format=&count=&max=25&offset=75&sort=&qlookup=potatoes
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