Healthy Living
Nutrition
Simple Summary
Potatoes are not one of your 5-a-day, but they can still have a valuable place in a healthy balanced diet. They provide energy, fibre, potassium, vitamin C and B vitamins.
The healthiest choices are usually boiled, baked, mashed or roasted potatoes with minimal added fat and salt, especially when the skin is left on.
Potatoes are sometimes unfairly dismissed as “just carbs”, but they can be a useful part of a healthy balanced diet.
They are a starchy food, which means they provide carbohydrate for energy. In the UK, starchy foods such as potatoes, bread, rice, pasta and cereals are normally recommended as one of the main parts of a balanced diet.
Potatoes can also provide fibre, especially when eaten with the skin on. Fibre helps support digestion and can help meals feel more satisfying.
Potatoes contain useful nutrients including potassium, vitamin C and some B vitamins. Potassium helps support normal muscle and nerve function, while B vitamins help the body release energy from food.
A plain boiled, baked or microwaved potato is naturally low in fat. The healthiness of a potato often depends on how it is cooked and what is added to it. A jacket potato with beans, tuna, cottage cheese, salad or vegetables can be a very different meal from deep-fried chips or crisps.
Do Potatoes Count As One Of Your 5-A-Day?
In the UK, ordinary white potatoes do not count as one of your 5-a-day.
This is because they are usually eaten as the starchy part of the meal, rather than as a vegetable portion. That does not mean they are unhealthy. It simply means they sit in a different part of the balanced diet.
Other root vegetables, such as sweet potatoes, parsnips, swede and turnips, can count towards 5-a-day because they are usually eaten as vegetables alongside the starchy part of the meal.
Healthier Ways To Eat Potatoes
Potatoes can be a good choice when they are cooked simply.
Good options include:
- Jacket potatoes with the skin left on.
- Boiled new potatoes.
- Mashed potato made with a little milk rather than lots of butter or cream.
- Oven wedges with a small amount of oil.
- Potatoes added to soups, stews and salads.
Less healthy choices include deep-fried chips, crisps, heavily salted potato products, or potatoes served with large amounts of butter, cream, cheese or rich sauces.
Approximate values for plain boiled potatoes, cooked in their skins, with no added salt, butter or oil.
| Nutrient | Approximate amount per 100g |
|---|---|
| Energy | 66 kcal |
| Protein | 1.4g |
| Carbohydrate | 15.4g |
| Fat | 0.3g |
| Fibre | 1.5g |
| Potassium | 460mg |
| Iron | 1.6mg |
| Vitamin B1 | 0.13mg |
Potatoes are mainly a starchy carbohydrate food, but they also provide fibre, potassium, vitamin C and some B vitamins. The exact values can vary depending on the potato variety, whether the skin is eaten, storage, and cooking method. Boiling, baking, roasting and frying can all change the final nutrition values, especially calories and fat if oil, butter or cream are added.
For example, EUFIC lists boiled potatoes in their skins at about 66 kcal per 100g, while baked potatoes and fried potatoes are higher, especially where fat is added.
Source notes: Approximate nutrition values based on published food composition data. Values may vary by potato type, cooking method and portion size. This article is for general healthy eating information only and is not personal dietary or medical advice.
Sources: NHS Eat Well guidance and British Nutrition Foundation information on starchy foods.
Note: This article is for general healthy eating information only. It is not personal dietary or medical advice.