মিষ্টি আলু মাইক্রোনিউট্রিয়েন্টে ভরপুর এক সুপারফুড। এর উপকারিতা সম্পর্কে জানিয়েছেন পপুলার মেডিকেল কলেজ হাসপাতালের প্রধান পুষ্টিবিদ নিশাত শারমিন নিশি।
মিষ্টি আলুর পুষ্টিগুণ ও উপকারিতা
মিষ্টি আলু খাওয়ার উপকারিতা অনেক। বিভিন্ন ধরনের পুষ্টিগুণ সমৃদ্ধ হওয়ায় এটি গ্রহণে ভালো উপকারিতা পাওয়া যায়।
১. মিষ্টি আলুর অ্যান্টিঅক্সিডেন্ট ক্যানসার ঝুঁকি কমায়। বিশেষত বর্তমানে স্তন ক্যানসারের মাত্রা বেড়ে গেছে। এর ঝুঁকি কমাতে মিষ্টি আলু সহায়ক।
২. মিষ্টি আলু পাকস্থলীর ক্যানসার ও আলসারের ঝুঁকি কমায়।
৩. হৃদযন্ত্র ভালো রাখতে সাহায্য করে।
৪. ভিটামিন এ এর অভাবে চোখে নানা সমস্যা ও রাতকানা রোগ হয়। ভিটামিন এ সমৃদ্ধ হওয়ায় মিষ্টি আলু চোখ ভালো রাখতে এবং রাতকানা রোগ প্রতিরোধে সহায়তা করে।
৫. ত্বক ও চুলের স্বাস্থ্য রক্ষায় মিষ্টি আলুর গুরত্ব রয়েছে।
৬. শিশুর মস্তিষ্কের বিকাশ এবং শারীরিক সুস্থতার জন্য পুষ্টির ভালো উৎস হিসেবে মিষ্টি আলু অনেক উপকারী। যেসব শিশুর মস্তিষ্কের বিকাশ বিলম্বিত হয় সেসব শিশুর অনেক সময় খাবার গ্রহণে অনীহা থাকে। তাদের জন্য মিষ্টি আলুর তৈরি বিভিন্ন খাবার রাখা যেতে পারে খাদ্যতালিকায়।
৭. মিষ্টি আলু পাকস্থলীর ক্যানসার ও আলসারের ঝুঁকি কমায়।
৮. যাদের কোষ্টকাঠিন্য আছে তাদের জন্য মিষ্টি আলু বেশ উপকারী।
৯. শরীরের রোগ প্রতিরোধ ক্ষমতা বাড়াতে সহায়ক।
১০. বয়সজনিত কারণে চোখের ক্ষতি(AMD) হলে মিষ্টি আলু খেলে উপকার পাওয়া যায়।
মিষ্টি আলু খাওয়ায় সতর্কতা
পুষ্টিবিদ নিশাত শারমিন বলেন, মিষ্টি আলু অনেক বেশি পরিমাণে খাওয়া ঠিক নয়। বিশেষত অনেকেই খোসাসহ পুড়িয়ে মিষ্টি আলু খান। এ ধরনের অতিরিক্ত পুড়ে যাওয়া খাবার হজমে সমস্যা তৈরি করতে পারে। বেশি পরিমাণে মিষ্টি আলু খেলে বদহজম ও পেটে ব্যথা হতে পারে।
মিষ্টি আলুতে প্রচুর পটাসিয়াম রয়েছে। এতে হাইপারকেলিমিয়া অর্থাৎ রক্তে পটাসিয়ামের মাত্রা স্বাভাবিকের চেয়ে বেশি হওয়ার ঝুঁকি থাকে। যে রোগীদের পটাসিয়াম খাওয়ায় বিধিনিষেধ রয়েছে, বিশেষ করে কিডনি রোগীদের খাদ্যতালিকায় মিষ্টি আলু কম রাখাই ভালো।
এছাড়া হৃদযন্ত্রের সমস্যা আছে এমন রোগীদের অত্যাধিক পটাসিয়াম সমৃদ্ধ খাবার খাওয়া ঠিক নয়। শরীরে পটাসিয়ামের মাত্রা বেড়ে গেলে হার্ট অ্যাটাকের ঝুঁকি বাড়ে। মিষ্টি আলুতে রয়েছে প্রচুর পরিমাণে অক্সালেট, যা কিডনিতে জমে পাথর তৈরির কারণ হতে পারে। তাই বেশি পরিমাণে মিষ্টি আলু খাওয়া ঠিক নয়, যাদের কিডনিতে পাথর আছে তাদের খাদ্যতালিকা থেকে মিষ্টি আলু বাদ দেওয়াই ভালো।
Sweet potatoes can help lower the risk of developing macular degeneration, an eye disease that's the most common cause of vision loss. This is because sweet potatoes are high in vitamin A and beta-carotene, which can help protect against macular degeneration.
Explanation
Vitamin A: Vitamin A is important for eye health and boosting the immune system.
Beta-carotene: The body converts beta-carotene into vitamin A. The more orange or yellow a sweet potato is, the more beta-carotene it contains.
Other health benefits of sweet potatoes include:
Lowering the risk of heart disease
Lowering LDL "bad" cholesterol
Reducing inflammation
Stabilizing blood sugar
Improving brain function
Helping with weight loss
Maintaining normal fluid levels in cells
Reducing blood pressure
Sweet potatoes are a good source of complex carbohydrates, fiber, antioxidants, and potassium. They can be eaten in both savory dishes and desserts.
Recent research has indicated that vegetables, such as celery, chicory, onion, and sweet potato, have tremendous anti-hyperuricemic and anti-gout activities.
One cup, or 200 grams (g), of baked sweet potato with skin provides (2Trusted Source):
Calories: 180
Carbs: 41 g
Protein: 4 g
Fat: 0.3 g
Fiber: 6.6 g
Vitamin A: 213% of the Daily Value (DV)
Vitamin C: 44% of the DV
Manganese: 43% of the DV
Copper: 36% of the DV
Pantothenic acid: 35% of the DV
Vitamin B6: 34% of the DV
Potassium: 20% of the DV
Niacin: 19% of the DV
In addition, sweet potatoes — especially the orange and purple varieties — are rich in antioxidants that protect your body from free radicals (3Trusted Source).
Free radicals are unstable molecules that can damage DNA and trigger inflammation.
Free radical damage has been linked to chronic illnesses like cancer, heart disease, and aging. Therefore, eating antioxidant-rich foods is good for your health (4Trusted Source).
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Nutrition
6 Surprising Health Benefits of Sweet Potatoes
Medically reviewed by Jerlyn Jones, MS MPA RDN LD CLT, Nutrition — Written by Erica Julson, MS, RDN, CLT — Updated on February 8, 2024
Nutritional value
Promotes gut health
Anti-cancer properties
Supports vision
Enhances brain function
Supports immunity
How to enjoy
Bottom line
Sweet potatoes are nutritious, packing a good amount of vitamin A, vitamin C, and manganese into each serving. They also have anticancer properties and may promote immune function and other health benefits.
Sweet potatoes are sweet, starchy root vegetables that are grown worldwide (1Trusted Source).
They come in a variety of sizes and colors — including orange, white, and purple — and are rich in vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and fiber.
Not to mention, they provide a number of health benefits and are easy to add to your diet.
Here are 6 surprising health benefits of sweet potatoes.
1. Highly nutritious
Sweet potatoes are a great source of fiber, vitamins, and minerals.
One cup, or 200 grams (g), of baked sweet potato with skin provides (2Trusted Source):
Calories: 180
Carbs: 41 g
Protein: 4 g
Fat: 0.3 g
Fiber: 6.6 g
Vitamin A: 213% of the Daily Value (DV)
Vitamin C: 44% of the DV
Manganese: 43% of the DV
Copper: 36% of the DV
Pantothenic acid: 35% of the DV
Vitamin B6: 34% of the DV
Potassium: 20% of the DV
Niacin: 19% of the DV
In addition, sweet potatoes — especially the orange and purple varieties — are rich in antioxidants that protect your body from free radicals (3Trusted Source).
Free radicals are unstable molecules that can damage DNA and trigger inflammation.
Free radical damage has been linked to chronic illnesses like cancer, heart disease, and aging. Therefore, eating antioxidant-rich foods is good for your health (4Trusted Source).
2. Promote gut health
The fiber and antioxidants in sweet potatoes can be beneficial for gut health.
Sweet potatoes contain two types of fiber: soluble and insoluble (5Trusted Source).
Your body cannot digest either type. Therefore, fiber stays within your digestive tract and provides a variety of gut-related health benefits.
Certain types of soluble fiber — known as viscous fibers — absorb water and soften your stool. On the other hand, non-viscous, insoluble fibers don’t absorb water and add bulk (6Trusted Source).
Some soluble and insoluble fibers can also be fermented by the bacteria in your colon, creating compounds called short-chain fatty acids that fuel the cells of your intestinal lining and keep them healthy and strong (7Trusted Source).
Fiber-rich diets containing 20–33 g of fiber per day have been linked to a lower risk of colon cancer and more regular bowel movements (8, 9Trusted Source, 10Trusted Source).
The antioxidants in sweet potatoes may provide gut benefits as well.
Test-tube studies have found that antioxidants in purple sweet potatoes promote the growth of healthy gut bacteria, including certain Bifidobacterium and Lactobacillus species (11Trusted Source, 12Trusted Source).
Greater amounts of these types of bacteria within the intestines are associated with better gut health and a lower risk of conditions like irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and infectious diarrhea (13Trusted Source, 14Trusted Source, 15Trusted Source).
3. May have cancer-fighting properties
Sweet potatoes offer various antioxidants, which may help protect against certain types of cancers.
Anthocyanins — a group of antioxidants found in purple sweet potatoes — have been found to slow the growth of certain types of cancer cells in test-tube studies, including those of the bladder, colon, stomach, and breast (16Trusted Source, 17Trusted Source).
Similarly, mice fed diets rich in purple sweet potatoes showed lower rates of early-stage colon cancer — suggesting that the anthocyanins in the potatoes may have a protective effect (18Trusted Source).
Extracts of sweet potato peels have also been found to have anti-cancer properties in test-tube and animal studies (19Trusted Source, 20Trusted Source).
However, studies have yet to test these effects in humans.
4. Support healthy vision
Sweet potatoes are incredibly rich in beta carotene, the antioxidant responsible for the vegetable’s bright orange color.
In fact, one cup (200 g) of baked orange sweet potato with skin provides more than double the amount of beta carotene that the average adult needs per day (2Trusted Source).
Beta carotene is converted to vitamin A in your body and used to form light-detecting receptors inside your eyes (21Trusted Source).
Severe vitamin A deficiency is a concern in developing countries and can lead to a special type of blindness known as xerophthalmia. Eating foods rich in beta carotene, such as orange-fleshed sweet potatoes, may help prevent this condition (22Trusted Source).
Purple sweet potatoes also seem to have vision benefits.
Older test-tube studies have found that the anthocyanins they provide can protect eye cells from damage, which may be significant to overall eye health (23Trusted Source).
5. May enhance brain function
Consuming purple sweet potatoes may improve brain function.
One animal study found that the anthocyanins in purple sweet potatoes could help protect the brain by reducing inflammation and preventing free radical damage (24Trusted Source).
Another study found that supplementing with anthocyanin-rich sweet potato extract could reduce markers of inflammation and improve spatial working memory in mice, possibly due to its antioxidant properties (25Trusted Source).
No studies have been done to test these effects in humans, but in general, diets rich in fruits, vegetables, and antioxidants are associated with a 13% lower risk of mental decline and dementia (26Trusted Source, 27Trusted Source).
6. May support your immune system
Orange-fleshed sweet potatoes are one of the richest natural sources of beta carotene, a plant-based compound that is converted to vitamin A in your body (28Trusted Source).
Vitamin A is critical to a healthy immune system, and low blood levels have been linked to reduced immunity (29Trusted Source).
It’s also key for maintaining healthy mucous membranes, especially in the lining of your gut.
The gut is where your body is exposed to many potential disease-causing pathogens. Therefore, a healthy gut is an important part of a healthy immune system.
Studies have shown that vitamin A deficiency increases gut inflammation and reduces the ability of your immune system to respond properly to potential threats (30Trusted Source).
No studies have been conducted to determine whether sweet potatoes, in particular, have an effect on immunity, but eating them regularly can help prevent vitamin A deficiency (31Trusted Source).
How to add them to your diet
Sweet potatoes are very easy to add to your diet.
They can be enjoyed with or without the skin and can be baked, boiled, roasted, steamed, or pan-cooked.
Their natural sweetness pairs well with many different seasonings, and they can be enjoyed in both savory and sweet dishes.
Some popular ways to enjoy sweet potatoes include:
Sweet potato chips: Peeled, thinly sliced, and baked.
Sweet potato fries: Peeled, cut into wedges or matchsticks, and baked.
Sweet potato toast: Cut into thin slices, toasted, and topped with ingredients like nut butter or avocado.
Mashed sweet potatoes: Peeled, boiled, and mashed with milk and seasoning.
Baked sweet potatoes: Baked whole in the oven until fork-tender.
Sweet potato hash: Peeled, diced, and cooked with onion and peppers in a pan.
Spiralized sweet potatoes: Cut into spirals, sautéed, and sauced.
In baked goods: Sweet potato puree adds moisture without fat.
From: healthline.
2. Daily Star Bangla
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