Dieticians recommend potatoes as an easily digestible source of carbohydrate - the body’s main fuel - which your muscles need throughout the day. The big advantage of getting your carbohydrates from potatoes, rather than pasta or rice, is that you also get an abundance of other vital nutrients and virtually no fat!
Potatoes also contain more fibre, iron and folate than pasta or rice. And they’re packed with vitamin C (while neither pasta nor rice contains any). It’s no wonder that many refer to the potato as a nutritional powerhouse and a near perfect food!
Potatoes |
Pasta |
Rice |
|
|---|---|---|---|
Energy Values |
72kcals |
86kcals |
138kcals |
Fat |
0.1g |
0.5g |
1.3g |
Vitamin C |
6mg |
none |
none |
Vitamin B6 |
0.33mg |
0.01mg |
0.07mg |
Fibre |
1.2g |
0.9g |
0.1g |
Protein |
1.8g |
3.0g |
2.6g |
Folate |
19mcg |
3mcg |
7mcg |
Potatoes (175g) |
Pasta (230g) |
Rice (180g) |
|
|---|---|---|---|
Energy Values |
126kcals |
198kcals |
248kcals |
Fat |
0.2g |
1.1g |
2.3g |
Vitamin C |
11mg |
none |
none |
Vitamin B6 |
0.58mg |
0.02mg |
0.13mg |
Fibre |
2.1g |
2.1g |
0.2g |
Protein |
3.15g |
6.9g |
4.7g |
Folate |
33mcg |
7mcg |
13mcg |
Source: McCance and Widdowson,
The Composition of Foods, 6th Edition.