‘Eat more vegetables’ a powerful phrase
Carolyn O’Neil is a registered dietitian and author of “The Slim Down South Cookbook.” Email her at carolyn@carolynoneil.com.
I had no idea that this column covering research and trends in healthy eating could be a powerful part of changing the way Americans eat.
After analyzing 50 years of food words mentioned in major newspapers like the New York Times and London Times, researchers at California Polytechnic State University and Cornell University, found that words trending today can predict a country’s obesity level three years from now. Apparently the more times I mention fruits and vegetables in 2015, the skinnier you’ll be in 2018.
“Newspapers are basically crystal balls for obesity,” said coauthor, Brian Wansink of the Cornell Food and Brand Lab. “This is consistent with earlier research showing that positive messages — ‘Eat more vegetables and you’ll lose weight,’— resonate better with the general public than negative messages, such as ‘eat fewer cookies.’”
The study published in BMC Public Health found that the number of mentions of sweet snacks was related to higher obesity levels but the number of salty snack mentions was unrelated. Mentioning potato chips is OK, I guess. The number of vegetable and fruit mentions was related to lower levels of obesity in three years..
So with that in mind, today’s column dishes up a nutritious serving of perhaps one of the most underappreciated vegetables on the plate, the white potato.
Spud-pedia
- A medium potato contains around 100 calories, for which you get 45 percent of a day's recommended vitamin C and 6 percent of the protein.
- Potatoes pack an impressive roster of other nutrients including vitamin B6, iodine, niacin, iron and copper.
- Potatoes are fat free, sodium free and cholesterol free. (Before you add sour cream, butter, bacon and shredded cheese.)
- Calorie for calorie, potatoes deliver nearly twice the potassium as bananas. Potassium is important for heart health including blood pressure control. Surveys show 97 percent of Americans do not consume enough potassium.
- A small potato contains about 3 grams of fiber and that's no small potatoes. Maureen Storey, Ph.D., president of the Alliance for Potato Research and Education said, "The nutrient beauty of the white potato is not just skin deep. The flesh is a significant source of fiber and key vitamins and minerals."
So, feel good about eating white potatoes. May I suggest the Yukon gold potato mash at Century House Tavern in Woodstock or perhaps the saffron potatoes with olive vinaigrette at Anis Bistro in Buckhead? You’ll thank me in 2018.
