First, to get 100 calories you can eat almost double the amount of carrots, 245g compared with 111g of a baked sweet potato. Protein and carbohydrate are about the same, whereas there is marginally more fat in carrots. However, for the same amount of calories, carrots have almost double the fiber!
Potatoes for health and nutrition
In addition to starch, potatoes contain vitamins, minerals, and fiber. They're rich in vitamin C, which is an antioxidant. Potatoes were a life-saving food source in early times because the vitamin C prevented scurvy.
CSPI ranked the sweet potato number one in nutrition of all vegetables. With a score of 184, the sweet potato outscored the next highest vegetable by more than 100 points. Points were given for content of dietary fiber, naturally occurring sugars and complex carbohydrates, protein, vitamins A and C, iron and calcium.
Beef liver is the ultimate vitamin A powerhouse, with 8,020 micrograms in a 3-ounce serving. That's a staggering 891% of the RDA for men and 1,457% for women. Lamb liver and liver sausage also offer off-the-charts levels of vitamin A.
In addition to being an excellent source of vitamins A and C, sweet potatoes are a good source of fiber, vitamin B-6 and potassium. And like all vegetables, they're relatively low in calories — one-half of a large sweet potato has just 81 calories. Mayo Clinic does not endorse companies or products.
While both our experts say eating a sweet potato a day is certainly healthy, they don't recommend more than that, since there are plenty of other vegetables to enjoy too. “If you're eating more than one a day, you might want to consider varying up your food choices so you get a variety of nutrients,” Rizzo says.
Aside from the berries we mentioned above, other great sources of vitamin A include green, leafy vegetables such as spinach and broccoli. You can also get healthy amounts from bell peppers, cantaloupes, apricots, butternut squash and pumpkins.
No. It's a misconception that carrots are high in sugar. A medium raw carrot contains only 5.8 grams of carbohydrate. Like othernon-starchyvegetables, carrots are a good addition to a healthy diet for someone with diabetes.
Carrots provide more antioxidants when boiled or steamed than when eaten raw, according to a January 2008 report in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry. In fact, researchers found that boiling carrots until tender increased the concentration of carotenoids by 14 percent.
They're loaded with beta carotene, which functions as a potent antioxidant and a rich source of vitamin A. These nutrients are important for your immune system, skin, vision, bones, and reproductive health, and have cleansing properties that may even reduce one's risk of developing cancer, Tallmadge adds.
Sweet potatoes fall into the healthy carb category. A medium sweet potato has about 140 calories and 5 grams of fiber. Sweet potatoes also have a low glycemic index score.
Unsurprisingly, boiled sweet potatoes contain more than 14 times the amount of sugar of regular boiled potatoes (11.6g compared to 0.8g per 100g). The majority of the sugar in sweet potatoes is from sucrose, with glucose and fructose making up the minority (1) .
The sweet potato had the lowest vitamin profile, as well as the largest sodium-to-potassium ratio. A relatively larger sodium-to-potassium ratio provides a lower score. That's because sodium possesses hypertensive properties, while potassium (and calcium) possess hypotensive properties.
Nutritionally, cauliflower is lighter in calories and carbs than potatoes and is more nutrient-dense. That's why it's popular among the low carb and weight loss communities.
Carrots can be a safe choice if you have diabetes and are watching your blood sugar levels. They're also non-starchy vegetables. So you can even enjoy small amounts of carrots if you're following the ketogenic, or keto, diet.
“Carrots are considered a nonstarchy vegetable, along with options such as broccoli and lettuce,” Ficek says. “These foods are safe for people with diabetes to eat at each meal without worry that glucose levels will spike.”
Like all veg, an 80g serving of carrots – that's equivalent to about ½ a medium-sized carrot or 3 heaped tablespoons – counts as one of your 5-A-DAY. Carrots are packed with fibre, which helps to keep the digestive system healthy and helps to balance your blood glucose (sugar) levels.
Broccoli is the only vegetable you actually need to eat, according to a doctor.
Iceberg Lettuce
It has almost no nutritional value, less than one gram of fiber per cup, and only 10 calories.