You hear a lot about the glycemic index and how white potatoes are not only unhealthy but also cause weight gain. In fact, many so-called nutrition experts advise you to avoid white foods.
Hmm. Not all white food is unhealthy.
Sure, white flour and white sugar are two of the most unhealthy things (I’d rather not call them food, as they rob your body of the most nutrition they feed) on the planet. Avoid them at all costs.
However, there are many white foods that enhance your health and well-being and can be an important part of any beneficial diet. Those foods include the obvious things like onions and garlic, cauliflower, and jicama, to name a few.
While popular articles and books tell you that more color on your plate means more antioxidants, vitamins, minerals, etc., the fact is, white veggies also provide significant and significant health benefits.
Personally, I experienced how quickly garlic lowers blood pressure. In fact, I have to watch my intake of that tasty herb, as it can cause my blood pressure to plummet! But garlic and onion also offer phyto-nutrients, vitamins and trace elements (your body needs minerals to absorb vitamins AND it also needs fats to assimilate fat-soluble vitamins).
Some of the most beneficial nutrients found in garlic and onions include allicin, quercetin (an important flavonoid), chromium, and other unique anti-inflammatory nutrients. (Silent inflammation causes most diseases and conditions)
Cauliflower provides vitamin C, fiber, minerals and special compounds such as glucosinolates and thiocyanates. Those compounds, which are found specifically in cruciferous vegetables like broccoli, cauliflower, and cabbage, help counteract estrogenic chemicals that are abundant in our food supply and in the environment. That action can help prevent excess belly fat. Cauliflower suddenly tastes better?
White mushrooms, surprisingly, have high levels of unique nutrients and antioxidants that include high amounts of two specific antioxidants: polyphenols and ergothionein.
White tea is supposed to contain more antioxidants than green tea.
And now we come to the most controversial of white foods: potatoes. (This discussion focuses on white potatoes. Note that I mean white potatoes instead of sweet potatoes. You see the nutritional factors present in white potatoes carry over to yellow, blue, red, and purple potatoes) .
The controversy arises from the inclusion of white potatoes as a high-glycemic food. The fact is that a high glycemic index is not the only factor that determines the virtue or the unhealthiness of foods.
Many factors determine how your body will react and process the carbohydrates you eat. Gluceminc loading is a factor. Another very significant factor is how much and how you eat this high-glycemic food, that is, combined with other foods.
Some foods must be eaten in such large quantities to reach the high glycemine index that no human would voluntarily eat that amount.
Food combining is not a new science. The food combinations you eat together affect the way you process what you eat. If you always eat a high-glycemic food that’s high in fiber, healthy fats, and even some varieties of protein (not animal products), your blood sugar and glycemic response will often slow down so you don’t suffer any ill effects.
That said, if you plan on eating potatoes, never fry them. Always eat them with the skin (there are many vitamins and fiber in the skin) and avoid eating them with animal protein. Potatoes contain many vitamins and minerals.
