Looking At Potatoes With New Eyes — Hello Ultimate Diet Food

Potato a starch rich vegetable has always been considered something of an anti-diet food, but new ground breaking research results from McGill University are going to change the way we judge our side order of French fries or baked/mashed potatoes. According to this interesting study published in the journal of “Molecular Nutrition & Food Research”, high potato consumption in mice led to decrease weight gain when fed on obesity-triggering diet. The research team has concluded that the high concentration of polyphenols in potatoes might be responsible for this weight retarding action.

Slimming Power Of Tuberous Spuds

Polyphenols — a disease-fighting chemical component found in fruits and vegetables helps prevent the body from absorbing glucose and converting it into fat. Potatoes reportedly are a richer source of polyphenols even more so than the popular sources like blueberries or green tea.

In the study, a special variety of mice prone to weight gain were fed a diet with more than 60 percent of calories coming from saturated fat. One group of mice were also fed polyphenol-rich extract derived from Russet Burbank and Onaway potatoes, weight gain was reduced by as much as 63 percent — even among mice that consumed the largest quantities of saturated fat.

Mice that started out weighing on average 25 grams put on about 16 grams. Meanwhile, mice that consumed the same diet but with a potato extract gained much less weight: only 7 more grams. This study brilliantly shows us that a simple potato extract may limit weight gain from a diet that is high in fat and refined carbohydrates.

The control group in this research showed no health benefit among any mice when synthetic versions of the top four polyphenols in potatoes were substituted for the extract.

The daily dose of extract in the study came from 30 potatoes, the research team doesn’t advise anyone to eat 30 potatoes a day (because that would be an enormous number of calories). The McGill team is suggesting controlling obesity with natural potato extract and currently they are in the process of planning a new study to confirm these results in humans.

Potatoes long been considered an anti-diet food and have been shunned from dieters plates, this study gives hope to weight watches worldwide that you can finally have your cake and eat it too.