5 Myths About Potatoes

For several years, potatoes have faced criticism, accused of contributing "empty calories" and being fattening.

This has led to some persistent myths about the health benefits of potatoes, which the facts below examine and debunk.

We hope that as a food professional, you can use these facts in your daily work of preparing delicious, healthy food and in your conversations with your guests.

Myth 1

“Potatoes are empty calories”

No, potatoes actually contain a wide range of important nutrients. Besides carbohydrates in the form of starch, which provides the body with energy, potatoes also contribute vitamins and minerals. Notably, the amounts of vitamin C, B6, and potassium are at levels that significantly contribute to the body's daily needs.

Potatoes also provide dietary fiber, with a content of approximately 1.4 g per 100 g.

In comparison, spinach contains 1.9 g per 100 g.

Coarse vegetables like carrots and white cabbage contain 2.9 g and 2.3 g of dietary fiber per 100 g, respectively.

Myth 2

“Potatoes make you fat”

Potatoes have a relatively high water content. This means that the energy content in 100 g of boiled potato is approximately 40% lower than in equivalent amounts of cooked pasta or rice. Therefore, you can eat a larger portion of potatoes compared to pasta and rice without consuming more calories.

Potatoes contain carbohydrates, just like rice and pasta, but several studies have shown that weight-loss diets containing normal amounts of carbohydrates (from sources like bread, rice, pasta, and potatoes) are just as effective as similar diets with very low carbohydrate content.

Potatoes contain less than ½ g of fat per 100 g.

Myth 3

“Potatoes don't make you feel full”

On the contrary – studies have shown that potatoes have good satiating properties.

Therefore, the Danish Veterinary and Food Administration's website also highlights that potatoes are one of the foods that provide the most satiety for the fewest calories.

However, it's important to note that this only applies to boiled and baked potatoes, and not, for example, to french fries, which are less filling and typically have a relatively high fat content.

Myth 4

“Potatoes' vitamin C disappears during cooking”

The vitamin C content in raw potatoes is listed in official nutrient tables as an average of 26 mg per 100 g.

During preparation, including peeling and boiling, potatoes lose some of their vitamin C content.

However, since potatoes are naturally a good source of vitamin C, a significant amount will remain even after cooking. Therefore, potatoes are considered an important source of vitamin C.

In official nutrient tables, the content is stated as 8 mg per 100 g of boiled potato, which is roughly the same level as in apples, where the content is 10 mg per 100 g.

Myth 5

“Potatoes are not healthy enough to be included in the “6 a day” recommendation”

The reason potatoes are not counted towards the 600 g of fruit and vegetables recommended daily is that they contain a relatively high amount of starch – and are therefore categorized in the diet alongside rice, pasta, and bread.

As mentioned above under the question “Do potatoes make you fat?”, the energy content, and thus starch, is significantly lower in potatoes than in cooked rice and pasta.

Changes When Frying Potatoes

For most raw ingredients, the nutrient content changes on the journey 'from field to fork,' and this also applies to potatoes.

This includes, for example, the loss of vitamins during heating and, in some cases, changes in the distribution of energy from carbohydrates, protein, and fat.

Such changes occur not only when potatoes are processed industrially but also when they are prepared in kitchens.

During the production of fried potato products, there is a loss of vitamins and an increase in fat content.

Using optimized production methods, the increase in fat content in Flensted products is limited to between 1 and 5 g per 100 g, depending on the product type.

At the same time, oils with a high content of unsaturated fat are used for frying.