A new study has shown that potato consumption is not tied to cardiometabolic disease risk, an Oct. 11 news release said.
Researchers at Boston University examined the influence of potatoes as part of overall diet and lifestyle patterns on cardiometabolic disease risk. They discovered there was no change in cardiometabolic risk factors associated with intake of either fried or non-fried potatoes in adults in the long-running Framingham Offspring cohort.
“In this study, we looked at the effects of higher intakes of potatoes on blood pressure, lipids, and glucose and we found that after accounting for other dietary and lifestyle factors, there was no increased risk of cardiometabolic disorders associated with potato consumption,” lead study investigator Lynn L. Moore, associate professor of Medicine at the Boston University Chobanian and Avedisian School of Medicine, said in the release.
Moore noted they found that those in the highest potato intake category consumed 25 per cent more total fruits and vegetables than those in the lower potato intake group, making those who consumed more potatoes were more likely to meet the recommendations of the Dietary Guidelines.
The findings from Moore’s research group observed no association between consuming four or more cup-equivalents of potatoes per week (both white and sweet, fried and non-fried) and type 2 diabetes (T2DM), impaired fasting glucose (IFG), hypertension, and dyslipidemia in a large population of healthy Caucasian adults.
The effects of fried potato consumption appeared to be modified by other diet and lifestyle factors, the release said. These findings show how important overall diet and lifestyle is when it comes to cardiometabolic disease risk.
Data from 2,523 offspring of the Framingham Heart Study, 30 years of age and older, were included in this prospective cohort study that began in 1971, the release said. The consumption of potatoes (both white and sweet potatoes) was derived from total vegetable servings, with health outcome data coming from regular examination visits.
The release noted the results of this study support the need for future randomized controlled trials to investigate the effects of potatoes as part of a healthy diet on cardiometabolic disease risk.
The study was published in the Journal of Nutritional Science.
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