Nutritionist Sarah Di Lorenzo: Do you suffer from potato carbophobia? Why humble spud is a healthy alternative

I cannot tell you how many times a patient has sat across from me and said, with genuine anxiety, “but I’ve cut out potatoes “ or “ I can’t ever eat potato”, this sits somewhere between a confession and paranoia.

Teaching many weight loss patients about how amazing potatoes can be once you are at at goal weight can be a real challenge.

It takes time, and the science backs me up completely.

The fear of potatoes is not justified, they are a staple in my family and the perfect option for many who are gluten free or gluten sensitive.

The fear of potatoes is the direct result of the success of the low-carbohydrate movement, the glycaemic index obsession, and a broader carbophobia.

If you look at the bigger picture this has actually driven so many people away from whole, real, affordable foods and toward ultra-processed alternatives.

Some interesting history about the potato is it was Ireland’s primary source of vitamin C for over a century.

When the Great Famine of 1845–1852 destroyed the crop entirely, scurvy swept through the population with devastating and fatal consequences, leaving skeletal evidence of vitamin C deficiency that was only discovered in mass burial grounds in 2005.

A food so many fear and avoid today once stood between an entire nation and death.

From a nutrition perspective, the potato is one of the most nutrient-dense foods available.

A medium potato with its skin on delivers vitamin C, potassium — more per gram than a banana — vitamin B6, magnesium and both soluble and insoluble fibre, which is so important for our overall health and wellness.

Potatoes are also one of the most satiating foods ever measured on the satiety index, ranking higher than brown rice, pasta, and wholegrain bread.

If you are eating potatoes, you are less likely to overeat, but instead will feel satisfied, and we all love that feeling.

The potassium alone is significant.

Potassium is one of the most important dietary minerals for blood pressure regulation, and research shows most Australians are chronically under-consuming it.

A medium potato with skin provides approximately 900 milligrams of potassium which is around 20 per cent of the daily target.

Plus one medium potato boiled with the skin on is only 115 calories. When I tell people this does really help with managing carbophobia.

Here is where potatoes become genuinely exciting from a gut health perspective.

When you cook a potato and then cool it in the fridge overnight, a portion of the digestible starch converts to resistant starch.

Resistant starch behaves like a prebiotic fibre. It bypasses digestion in the small intestine and arrives intact in the colon, where it ferments and produces butyrate which is the short-chain fatty acid that fuels colonocytes, strengthens the gut lining, reduces inflammation, and is associated with reduced colorectal cancer risk.

Next time you are cooking, consider a potato salad. Cold potato salad is, from a microbiome perspective, a genuinely therapeutic food and delicious.

When it comes to the glycemic index, yes it is true that plain, hot, boiled or mashed potato has a high glycaemic index. But you can’t just focus on the GI of a potato to scare you off eating potatoes.

When you eat a potato as part of a mixed meal with protein, fat, and fibre, the glycaemic impact of potato is substantially blunted.

Eating a potato alongside salmon, olive oil, and vegetables is metabolically very different from eating potato alone. Context always matters.

So which is the best to eat?

There are many different varieties of potatoes.

Cooled and reheated potato or cold potato salad has the highest resistant starch content.

Skin-on roasted or baked potato has the maximum fibre, potassium, and nutrients.

Boiled baby potatoes have a lower GI than large floury varieties.

Sweet potato has a slightly lower GI, rich in beta-carotene and additional antioxidants.

Purple potato contains anthocyanins (antioxidants) and are among the most anti-inflammatory phytonutrients in our food supply.

Where potatoes are bad for us and the worst way to eat them is as deep-fried chips and hot chips.

The frying process generates advanced glycation end products, strips away fibre benefits, and adds inflammatory fats.

Instant mashed potato is highly processed, high GI, and is stripped of fibre and micronutrients.

Potato chips are ultra-processed, high sodium, oxidised fats, and have negligible nutritional value.

And as for loaded potato skins from fast food, well the potato itself is fine; it is everything added to it that is the problem.

Potatoes should be a part of a healthy balanced diet and enjoyed, not feared. The key is to enjoy the right portions, cooked the right way and you will get all the health benefits plus feel satisfied.