Potatoes can rightfully be called the "second bread" because of its popularity in human nutrition. It is boiled, fried, stewed - they do whatever they want. But many do not even think about how useful it is for the human body, and in what cases it can be harmful. Potato (in English Potato) is a perennial tuberous herb from the genus Solanaceae, belongs to the Solanaceae family. Potatoes in Russia began to be grown thanks to Peter I, who brought them from Holland at the end of the 17th century.
Vitamins and trace elements in potatoes
Potato proteins contain many essential amino acids. When using the daily norm of boiled potatoes, that is, 300 grams per day, you can easily meet the body's needs for phosphorus, potassium and carbohydrates.
100 grams of young potatoes contain 20 mg of vitamin C. If you store potatoes for a long time, then the content of this vitamin in it gradually decreases.
Potatoes are rich in mineral salts, which are represented by potassium and phosphorus salts. Contains calcium, sodium, iron, magnesium, sulfur, chlorine, bromine, zinc, copper, silicon, manganese, boron, iodine. The potato tuber contains about 1% ash.
It should be noted that minerals are unevenly in the tuber: the largest number is concentrated in the bark, the smallest is contained in the outer core.
Calorie content of potatoes
per 100 g is 80 kcal, as well as 2 g of protein, 0.4 g of fat and about 18 g of carbohydrates.
The benefits of potatoes
- Mineral elements in potatoes are presented in an easily digestible form, so their alkaline salts maintain an alkaline balance in the blood.
- Those people who have exacerbations of gastritis and ulcers can safely eat boiled potatoes, since its fiber is not capable of irritating the mucous membrane of the stomach and intestines.
- With the help of potato starch, it is possible to reduce the content of cholesterol in serum and liver, this is ensured by its anti-sclerotic properties.
- Potassium in potatoes helps to remove excess water from the body. People with kidney and heart disease should definitely include potatoes in their diet, as potassium salts prevent swelling.
- With the help of raw potato juice, pharyngitis and laryngitis can be cured. The healing properties of the juice fight against periodontal disease. You can rinse your mouth with potato juice three times a day and then the gums will not be inflamed.
- Potato juice helps with headaches due to its acetylcholine content. Used internally.
- Potato juice is a good remedy for nausea, heartburn, constipation. Effectively acts on stomach ulcers and duodenal ulcers, reducing the acidity of the stomach.
The harm of potatoes
Despite the fact that potatoes have so many useful properties, at a certain time they can cause serious harm to the human body. Such a danger is presented due to the content in it solanine poisonaccumulating over a long storage period of potatoes. Therefore, it is necessary to store potatoes for no more than three months. Many trading enterprises of European countries even destroy their stocks, which have been stored for a long time, and buy it from southern countries, which collect potato tubers all year round.
