Eating Potatoes and the Glycemic Index

Yes, potatoes are high glycemic.  A couple varieties, such as new potatoes may be medium, but for the most part, count on potatoes being in the high range. Does this mean that eating potatoes is bad for your blood sugar and weight control? Sometimes yes, and sometimes no, based on how you eat them.

If you eat potatoes loaded with butter, sour cream, and real bacon bits, the effective GI value is lower. The same holds true if you eat scalloped potatoes. That's because the addition of fat slows the digestion of carbohydrates in your stomach. The slower a carbohydrate is digested, the lower the GI value. Eating potatoes loaded with fat gives you another health concern - eating too much saturated fat. If you load the baked potato with non-fat versions of butter, sour cream, and bacon bits, you won't lower the glycemic index value.  So if you are one of the lucky folks who can eat saturated fat - meaning you don't have high cholesterol, have a super healthy ratio of HDL and LDL, and are at your ideal weight, then go ahead and load up your potato. Just be sure you're not at risk for developing insulin resistance from eating too much fat.

Another way to make your potatoes low glycemic is to prepare potato salad with a vinegar and oil dressing. Add some mustard and any other acid or sour tasting condiment, such as dill pickles, capers, or marinated vegetables. Adding acidic foods to high-glycemic foods lowers the effective GI value because it slows stomach emptying. If you eat a meal with a salad dressing that contains 3 teaspoons of vinegar per serving, you'll lower the effective GI value of the meal by 30 percent.

A surprise feature of potatoes is that baked sweet potatoes are low glycemic. That's right. They weigh in at a low 46 glycemic index value. They aren't actually a variety of potato, but rather a yam. Serve them baked, or roasted with olive oil and rosemary or a seasoning of your choice. They taste great as chili fries. You'll enjoy their natural sweet taste, too. Be a bit careful with sweet potatoes. If you serve a sweet potato casserole with marshmallows and brown sugar for Thanksgiving, you may need to consider it high-glycemic on the order of candy.

Using the above suggestions, you may be able to enjoy potatoes in moderation and meet your health and weight loss goals. You can find some potato recipes and suggestions in my books, The Complete Idiot's Guide Glycemic Index Cookbook and The Complete Idiot's Guide to Glycemic Index Weight Loss.