Can You Eat Potatoes In Mediterranean Diet

Potatoes definitely shouldn’t be avoided in the Mediterranean diet. Potatoes may seem like a “bad carb” sometimes, but they aren’t viewed that way on this diet. They can be a great source of potassium, vitamin C, vitamin B6, fiber, and more. Try eating white potatoes and sweet potatoes without going overboard.

dieticians are formal: the potato does not make you fat if it is consumed after steaming and in reasonable quantities. In fact, it is not very caloric since for 100 grams, steaming, provides 80 calories.

True, it has a high glycemic index (65), which means that it increases blood sugar levels a lot. But this measure takes into account the effect of isolated foods. However, it is rare to consume it without proteins (meat, fish) and without lipids (butter, oil, fresh cream) which will both slow down the rate at which carbohydrates enter the blood.

Satiety index

Potatoes have a great advantage, which is their ability to satisfy hunger for a long time. We noticed it when we ate them, but it was studied scientifically, with a new measurement tool for food: the satiety index! Designed at the University of Sydney to help diabetic patients control their blood sugar, this index measures a food’s ability to satisfy hunger, taking white bread as a reference at a base value of 100. But the potato is at the top of the ranking at 300!

Most of the harmful effects attributed to it have nothing to do with the potato itself. The problem is its preparation. If broccoli were eaten in the fryer with a lot of salt and industrial mayonnaise, would it still be considered healthy? Boiled then hash browned, or baked, they will offer you all their benefits. In adapted quantities and not every day, it is part of a balanced consumption style.

Starch

The other problem is also that we are not at all equal in terms of carbohydrates: some overreact but not to mention pathologies, and other organisms (and there are many) are addicted to sugar, and starch, and the more you eat, the more you want to eat when you are hungry as when you are not hungry

It can be replaced by sweet potato, white beans, brown rice, quinoa, or legumes.

Some figures to end with

Naturally, 100 grams of steamed apple is 100 grams of starch that provides 85 calories, 18 grams of carbohydrates, 1.5 grams of proteins, and 0.1 grams of fat, not salt but a procession of benefits with vitamins – including the precious vitamin C, magnesium and phosphorus.

Clearly, it provides you with energy, vitamins, and important minerals without weighing you down.

In addition, with the number of potato varieties that now exist on the market. The potato, consumed in moderation, steamed, under ash, water is not an attack on your line but rather a safe ally.

Note that the sweet potato, with its lower glycemic index, is even more efficient than its sister from this point of view!

This is another matter than fries with more than 250 calories and other chips that offer a much saltier note than the first with 550 kcals on the counter. Also, if the Belgians are masters in the art of their cooking by cooking them twice at two distinct temperatures and with beef fat to offer them their crispiness and their inimitable taste, it is a delicacy that it does not abuse at the risk of seeing your line melt in the sun … in a bad way.

In short, the potato alone does not make you lose weight or gain weight: it is healthy and nutritious food and a good source of energy, greedy moreover. On the other hand, fried, in chips or sauce, it is a real attack that he offers from time to time, for pleasure, without ever making it a habit!