Bake, Roast, Mash, Top, or Drink

by laurel on September 12, 2007

Men’s Fitness magazine featured sweet potatoes as their “fit food” for October 2007.  The following list gives you six reasons why you should add sweet potatoes to your diet.

  • Carotenoids – plant compounds help fight cell damage that happens in everyday life and during physical activities like a work out
  • Vitamin E – prevents free radicals from coverting LDL (bad) cholesterol into artery-clogging particles
  • Potassium – necessary for muscle contraction, bone health, nerve transmission, water balance, and healthy blood pressure (higher potassium content than bananas)
  • Fiber – keeps you satisfied
  • Copper – helps produce connective tissue such as collagen which keeps your skin looking young and your muscles healthy
  • Quercetin – this phytonutrient helps your body fight allergies (for example, asthma and hay fever)

Ref: Men’s Fitness, October 2007, p. 30

{ 1 comment… read it below or add one }

Lynne Eldridge M.D. September 14, 2007 at 9:47 pm

Laurel,

Need I say again that I believe you have the greatest healthy site on the web. A perfect dose of information presented in a fun way that people can try today! I know I certainly respond well to your healthy tips presented in a way that I can actually start now, rather than saying “thats nice,” and…

I read your post and asked a good friend who is an excellent cook for a recipe idea. He recommended slicing the sweet potatoes thin, sprinkling them with olive oil, a little fresh cracked pepper and sea salt, and baking them slowly at 250 degrees F. A child here for a sleepover said they tasted better than McDonalds french fries. Thanks!

Lynne Eldridge MD

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