Sweet potatoes contain a lot of nutrients (which is why they are so popular) including a massive amount of beta-carotene, the nutrient that our bodies turn into vitamin A. It’s not uncommon to see mashed sweet potatoes, sweet potato fries, sweet potato pie, and roasted sweet potatoes on menus and tables across the continent. All of these methods preserve much of the nutritional value of both types of potatoes, says Bovell-Benjamin. Find out how sweet potatoes and pumpkin stack up in terms of calories, carbs, fiber, and more. One cup of raw carrots is a mere 50 calories and 3.5 grams of fiber, so they are a great food for weight loss. Eat sweet potatoes with butter to help this transformation work best. Valerie on September 07, 2012: The phytonutrients associated with different colors in sweet potato do have different health properties. Many times the names "sweet potato" and "yam" are used interchangeably in conversation, in cooking, and even at the supermarket, but they are really two different vegetables.Although they are both root vegetables, they belong to two different plant families—the sweet potato is from the morning glory family while the yam is related to the lily. They contain a good amount of fiber as well as vitamin A, vitamin C, manganese and several other vitamins and minerals. Sweet potato has more pantothenic acid. Sweet potato is a great source of dietary fiber. They are also a rich source of vitamin K, vitamin C, potassium, manganese, folate, phosphorus, and fiber. Detailed nutrition comparison for carrots vs sweet potatoes. Sweet potatoes originated in North America, first joining market shelves alongside the white potato as far back as the late 1600s. The tubers have rough skin and the form is long and slender. Both the purple and orange guys are also very low in fat, helping to keep you slim and trim. Though we don’t always think of sweet potatoes as a protein powerhouse, both varieties contain about 4grams per cup; not bad! Sweet potatoes are much more common in large North American supermarkets than yams, translating to higher use in Western diets. These are the sweet potatoes that you roast for meal prep, use for Thanksgiving sweet potato pie or marshmallow-topped mashed potatoes, and snack on … All the varieties described below are technically sweet potatoes, though they’re often called yams. Yam is higher in vitamins too than sweet potato, except for Vitamin A, Vitamin B2 and vitamin B5. A 3.5 ounce serving of sweet potatoes is about 90 calories, 20 grams of carbohydrates, and two grams of protein. The nutrition facts for raw and baked sweet potatoes can be vastly different. The average yam has a comparatively higher 27 grams worth of carbs for the same quantity. Both white potatoes and sweet potatoes contain a variety of nutrients. We compared 200g of baked in skin regular potatoes with 200g of baked in skin sweet potato and the results where quite interesting. When comparing sweet potatoes to real yams, there are more significant differences. First: the age-old question… is that a sweet potato or a yam? Components in Japanese Sweet Potato Tubers. Sweet potato has more beta-carotene than russet potato. Most notably, they’re higher in carbohydrates. A sweet potato is what you are used to seeing in the super market and in cans as yams or candied yams.There are a variety of types of sweet potato available that range from yellow, to orange, to reddish orange-coloured skin and flesh. Where these two differ for the most part is in their phytonutrient profile. Yams have very low nutritional value when compared to sweet potatoes. Yam is richer in fiber and lower in Glycemic Index, Sodium and Sugars than sweet potatoes in nutritional comparison. Some yams are the size and shape of small potatoes; others can grow up to 1.5m (5ft) in length and weigh over 100lbs (70kg). Like yams, the differences vary little between the varieties. It has rough, scaly skin and is long and cylindrical. Here’s the comparison: Here’s the comparison: 7-ounce white potato with skin: 220 calories, 5g protein, 51g carbs, 20mg calcium, 115mg phosphorus, 2.8mg iron, 16mg sodium, 844mg potassium, 4g fiber, .22mg thiamin, .07mg riboflavin, 3.3mg niacin, 16mg vitamin C Sweet potatoes are high in many important nutrients. In mineral content there isn’t obvious winner, because of extremely high Potassium and Sodium in yam, and fairly higher Calcium and Zinc in sweet potato. One cup of raw sweet potato may contain 114 calories, 26.8 grams of carbs and 5.6 g sugar, whereas one cup of baked sweet potato may contain 180 calories, 41.4 g carbs and 16.9 g sugar. Sweet potato vs yam and white potato. Sweet potatoes have almost no fat. Sweet potatoes that are mistakenly labeled yams contain the nutrition data above for sweet potatoes. A yam comes from a completely different plant and is a tuber, like a potato. The orange sweet potatoes are still commonly referred to as yams and firmer, lighter flesh ones as sweet potatoes. Sweet potatoes (Ipomoea ... it is the tuber that is consumed. With so many varieties of sweet potatoes available, all with different colors, shapes, tastes and textures, it's important to know how healthy they all are. "Because there are two types of sweet potatoes, the USDA has labeled the orange-fleshed sweet potatoes as 'yams' to distinguish the two varieties." "The confusion between sweet potatoes and yams really comes from the USDA," says Brigitte Zeitlin, R.D., a registered dietitian and founder of BZ Nutrition. Try butter-roasted sweet potatoes; sweet potato salad; twice-baked sweet potatoes or simply dice and roast in the oven for an easy side dish. Read on to learn all the benefits of sweet potatoes, their nutritional info, and ways to incorporate them into your diet. Dice, … Most all yams in a grocery store are actually sweet potatoes. Their flesh is starchy instead of sweet, with a flavor similar to the common white russet potatoes, but with a more fibrous texture. Yams have a tough, bumpy sin that is dark brown and textured like the outer shell of a coconut, or like a tree trunk. That’s more than the typical white potato (only about 18 grams). Even the nutritional value of yams and sweet potatoes is highly similar. That doesn’t … Don’t worry, the sweet, orange, Thanksgiving-pie staple you know and love actually is a sweet potato (they also come in white and purple varieties). Skins may be dark brown or light pink; insides white, yellow, purple, or pink. The source for the nutritional information above is the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Incidentally, yams and sweet potatoes are different. Yams, in comparison to sweet potatoes, are less sweet and moist, and more similar to the yucca plant in both flavor and texture. The tubers contain very little sugar and are much starchier than sweet potatoes. The recommended daily intake of fiber is 30 to 38 grams for men and 21 to 25 grams for women. A 1-cup serving of yams contains 6 grams, while white potatoes have just over 3.5 grams for this same serving size. There are a ton of different kinds of sweet potatoes from Beauregard to Regal, but it’s hard to find most of them in the store. As yams, they don’t have the same nutritional value as I. batatas. White potatoes and yams contain generous amounts of fiber, but yams are slightly higher. In general, most preparation methods for potatoes and sweet potatoes are healthy, including baking, microwaving, boiling, or steaming, says Adelia C. Bovell-Benjamin, Ph.D., a professor of food and nutritional sciences at Tuskegee University. Besides that, however, sweet potato strains have a very similar nutritional profile.Rich in vitamins, minerals, and phytonutrients, sweet potato has been named the ‘healthiest of all vegetables’ by The Center for Science in the Public Interest []. Like sweet potatoes, carrots contain plenty of anthocyanins. But back then, the sweet potato was also white or yellow in color. Both sweet potatoes and carrots are high in Vitamin A, dietary fiber and potassium. Both of them have … One medium cooked sweet potato contains approximately: 103 calories; 23.6 grams carbohydrates ; 2.3 grams protein; 0.2 gram fat; 3.8 grams dietary fiber; 21,907 international units … Nutritional differences between different types of sweet potatoes, whether orange or lighter in color, are minimal. Both sweet potatoes and yams contain antioxidants, which are compounds in plants that protect your cells from damage. Pair white potatoes with beans to increase the fiber content of a meal. The young leaves and shoots are sometimes eaten as greens.The sweet potato is distantly related to the common potato (Solanum tuberosum), both being in the order Solanales. Raw sweet potatoes are about 20 percent carbohydrates, three percent fiber, and about 1.5 percent protein. Types of Sweet Potatoes. Yams vs. Sweet Potatoes Nutrition. The tubers can grow to nearly five feet in length, though. The sweet potato or sweetpotato (Ipomoea batatas) is a dicotyledonous plant that belongs to the bindweed or morning glory family, Convolvulaceae.Its large, starchy, sweet-tasting, tuberous roots are a root vegetable. Both sweet potatoes and russet potato are high in potassium. Many people believe that regular potatoes are not nearly as good for you healthwise as sweet potatoes, but there are some comparable nutritional values that make them somewhat equal. Sweet potatoes are an easy-to-prepare root vegetable, filled with vitamins, minerals, fiber, and health-promoting phytonutrients. 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