Scientists from Imperial College London have recently discovered that the way potatoes are cooked plays a crucial role in their link to high blood pressure.
Potatoes have often been associated with higher blood pressure and risks of obesity, but this new research suggests that the preparation methods may be a key factor in these health outcomes.
Previous studies reported that eating more potatoes could lead to increased blood pressure and body weight.
However, these studies didn’t always take into account how the potatoes were cooked, what else people were eating, or the overall nutritional quality of their meals. These factors are important because they can affect how our bodies respond to the food we eat.
To dig deeper into this issue, the researchers from Imperial College examined how different types of potato dishes and meal quality were linked to blood pressure and body mass index (BMI), which is a measure of body fat based on height and weight.
The study involved 2,696 adults aged 40 to 59 from both the United States and the United Kingdom. The data came from a larger study called the International Study of Macro- and Micro-Nutrients and Blood Pressure (INTERMAP), which looks at how diet influences blood pressure.
The results were interesting: the researchers found no connection between eating potatoes in general and increased blood pressure or higher BMI.
This included common ways of preparing potatoes like boiling, mashing, or baking them, as well as potato-based mixed dishes. Simply put, eating non-fried potatoes didn’t seem to raise blood pressure or contribute to weight gain.
However, when it came to fried potatoes, the story was different, especially for women in the U.S. Among these women, eating more fried potatoes was linked to a noticeable increase in blood pressure.
Specifically, women who ate more fried potatoes had a 2.29 mmHg higher systolic blood pressure (the top number in a blood pressure reading) and a 1.14 mmHg higher diastolic blood pressure (the bottom number), regardless of their BMI.
The study also found that eating more fried potatoes was linked to weight gain, again, only in women. These effects were not seen in men.
Another key finding was that the overall nutritional quality of the meal made a difference. Fried potato meals that were low in nutritional value were linked to higher blood pressure, but when fried potatoes were part of a more nutritious meal, this connection wasn’t observed.
This suggests that it’s not just the fried potatoes themselves, but the kind of meal they are part of, that matters.
The study highlights that fried potatoes, especially when combined with low-nutrient meals, can increase blood pressure and contribute to weight gain, particularly in women.
On the other hand, non-fried potatoes, such as those that are boiled, mashed, or baked, do not seem to have the same negative effects.
These findings are significant because they suggest that the way we prepare our food and the overall quality of our meals can influence our health in important ways.
While potatoes have sometimes been blamed for health problems like high blood pressure, this study shows that it’s really the fried versions that pose the biggest risk, particularly when combined with meals lacking in nutrition.
For people who enjoy eating potatoes, the message from this research is clear: choosing healthier preparation methods like boiling, mashing, or baking, and pairing them with balanced, nutrient-rich meals, can help avoid the negative effects associated with fried potato dishes.
This is especially important for women who may be more sensitive to the effects of fried foods on blood pressure and weight gain.
The study was conducted by Ghadeer S. Aljuraiban and her team and published in the journal Clinical Nutrition.
These findings provide new insights into how simple changes in how we cook and what we eat can make a big difference in managing blood pressure and maintaining a healthy weight.
If you care about high blood pressure, please read studies that early time-restricted eating could help improve blood pressure, and natural coconut sugar could help reduce blood pressure and artery stiffness.
For more information about blood pressure, please see recent studies about added sugar in your diet linked to higher blood pressure, and results showing vitamin D could improve blood pressure in people with diabetes.
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