Seven Properties of Sweet Potatoes
1. Great for skincare
Including sweet potatoes into your regular diet is a way to obtain nutrients that promote skin health. According to research published in Food Chemistry, this food contains phenolic compounds, beta-carotene, and other antioxidant substances that contribute to inhibiting oxidative stress.
The latter is important, because, according to a publication in the Biomolecules journal, oxidative stress plays an important role in the process of skin aging, accelerating aging.
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2. Sweet potatoes improve vision problems
Even though sweet potatoes don’t miraculously improve your vision problems, it does have nutrients that are great for your visual health. Specifically, their high concentration of beta-carotene, synthesized as vitamin A in the body, helps prevent visual impairment and cataracts.
In addition, this vegetable can also help prevent a special type of blindness known as xerophthalmia, associated with vitamin A deficiency, according to a study published in the Journal of Pediatrics and Child Health.
3. Helps improve blood circulation
In addition to vitamins, sweet potatoes contain antioxidants, beta-carotene mainly. Thus, they’re good for reducing your levels of bad cholesterol which can hinder circulation when they accumulate in the arteries.
According to a study published in Food and Nutrition Research, carotenoids contribute to reducing the risk of cardiovascular diseases. Therefore, eating sweet potatoes is a great complement for people at risk, such as those with circulation problems, high blood pressure or cholesterol.
Check out this article too: How to Maintain Good Circulation
4. Sweet potato helps improve digestion
In accordance with the data of a study published in The Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, sweet potatoes have two types of fiber: soluble and insoluble. Thus, including them in your diet helps improve digestion and avoid constipation.
5. Promote a healthy cerebral function
Sweet potatoes contain anthocyanins, so they also contribute to healthy brain function. In fact, studies in mice showed that supplementation with sweet potato extract rich in anthocyanins improves learning and memory.
6. Sweet potatoes improve blood glucose regulation
This vegetable isn’t a treatment for diabetes; however, when ingested as a nutritional supplement, it can add many benefits to the life of patients with type-2 diabetes, as per a study published in Diabetes Care. Apparently, it doesn’t only help regulate blood glucose, but it increases insulin sensitivity.
7. Folic acid for pregnancy
Folic acid is a key nutrient during pregnancy. This substance is particularly important during the first stage of fetal development. In fact, its deficit affects the brain and spine of the fetus. Sweet potatoes are a food rich in this nutrient, so they’re a great option to complement the diet of a pregnant woman.
Sweet potatoes help improve the quality of the diet
Finally, there are many reasons to incorporate this vegetable into your diet. And even though they’re not a super powerful food or anything, their intake does provide you with nutrients that are key to your well-being. So, are you ready to try it?
