Nutrition and Health Facts
We’ve teamed up with local dietitian and nutritionist, Juliette Kellow, to tell you more about the nutrition and health benefits of potatoes…
Potatoes are perfect for plant-based eating
Whether you follow a vegetarian or vegan diet, or simply want to put more plants on your plate, potatoes are a great choice. Eating more plants and fewer animal foods is an important step in looking after both our health and the planet.
Did you know?
On average, each adult in the UK eats just under 18kg of potatoes in a year (4)
Potatoes are recommended as part of a healthy diet
Potatoes are included in the Government’s Eatwell Guide, which shows the types and proportions of foods we should eat to enjoy a balanced, nutritious and sustainable diet. Starchy foods such as potatoes should make up just over a third of the food we eat. It’s best to choose starchy foods that are higher in fibre, so enjoy potatoes cooked with their skins (1).
Did you know?
Potatoes don’t count towards 5-a-day! This is because the nutrients they contain are more like other starchy foods such as bread and pasta, rather than fruit and veg.
Potatoes are free from fat and saturates
Healthy eating advice recommends choosing foods that contain less fat, especially saturated fat, to keep hearts healthy. Potatoes are a perfect choice as they’re free from fat and saturates. To keep intakes low, use cooking methods that don’t add fat such as boiling or baking.
Did you know?
Potatoes aren’t a big provider of calories in UK diets. Potatoes – including chips and other fried or baked types of potato – contribute just 4% of the calories in adult’s diets, and 5% in children and teens (4)
Potatoes provide carbohydrates to support brain function
Having a diet that contains at least 130g carbohydrates a day can help to maintain normal brain function [2]. Potatoes make a good contribution to this – 200g boiled potato provides 35g carbohydrate, while a 200g jacket potato has 45g carbohydrate.
Potatoes are low in sugar
It’s a myth that potatoes are full of sugar – in fact, the opposite is true! Potatoes are naturally low in sugar, with most of the carbohydrate they contain being in the form of starch. A 200g serving of boiled potato has less than 2g sugars!
Did you know?
A 200g serving of boiled potatoes has just 148kcal.
Potatoes are free from salt
Healthy eating advice recommends no more than 6g salt a day (children need less) to lower the chances of high blood pressure, a risk factor for heart disease and stroke (3). Potatoes are naturally salt free. To keep them this way, don’t add salt during cooking or when you serve them.
Potatoes are a source of fibre
A massive 97% of adults fail to reach the recommended 30g fibre a day (4)! Potatoes are a good way to add more to our diet. Much of the fibre is in the skin, so scrub potatoes rather than peeling them – also great for reducing food waste and saving time on meal prep. All types of potato dishes can be enjoyed with the skins, including jackets, skin-on wedges, chips and roasties, and even mash.
Did you know?
Most people only manage to have around half the recommended 30g fibre a day –average daily intakes are just 16g (4). Enjoying potatoes, which provide fibre, can help close this gap.
Did you know?
You can double the fibre in potatoes by leaving the skin on. For example, 200g mash has 2.8g fibre while 200g skin-on wedges has 6g fibre!
Potatoes add potassium to diets, which benefits blood pressure
It’s not a nutrient we hear much about, but potassium helps to maintain normal blood pressure and is needed for our nervous system and muscles to function properly. Potatoes add significant amounts of potassium to diets. For example, a 200g jacket potato provides almost a third (30%) of our daily needs. It’s good news as many people, including 27% of teenage boys, 37% of teenage girls, and almost a fifth of adults (4), have very low intakes.
Did you know?
Some of the potassium in potatoes dissolves into the cooking water when they are boiled. That’s why roasted, baked and fried potatoes, which are cooked without water, contain more potassium than boiled.
Potatoes provide vitamin B1
Like many of the B vitamins, vitamin B1 (also known as thiamin) helps to release energy from the food we eat. It also contributes to psychological function and helps our nervous system and heart to work properly. Good news then that a 200g serving of potatoes provides around a fifth or our daily need for vitamin B1.
Potatoes add vitamin C to diets
Providing around a tenth of the vitamin C in UK diets, this nutrient benefits our health in many ways (4). Vitamin C…
-
Supports our immune system
-
Is vital for making collagen, which gives skin its strength and elasticity, and provides structural support for bones, cartilage, teeth, gums and blood vessels
-
Helps the body use the energy from the food we eat
-
Helps to reduce tiredness and fatigue
-
Is important for our nervous system
-
Supports psychological function
-
Helps the body absorb iron from non-meat foods like eggs, beans, lentils, chickpeas, nuts and seeds – especially important if you follow a vegan or vegetarian diet.
With so many benefits, it’s good to know a 200g serving of boiled potatoes provides more than a fifth of our daily needs for vitamin C.
Potatoes are gluten free
Gluten is a type of protein found in wheat, oats and barley. People with coeliac disease need to avoid gluten completely. Potatoes don’t contain gluten so are suitable for anyone with coeliac disease providing they’re not prepared or cooked with gluten-containing ingredients.
How to keep potatoes healthy
• Eat potatoes with their skins to add more fibre to meals
• Don’t cook potatoes with salt or add it at the table – season with plenty of black pepper instead
• Boil, steam, microwave, bake or air-fry potatoes rather than frying them to keep fat intakes low
• Mash potatoes with milk rather than cream
• Use butter and spreads sparingly on cooked potatoes to cut fat, or drizzle with a little olive oil for less saturated fat
• Make potato salad dressings with vegetable or olive oil and vinegar rather than soured cream to keep saturated fat down
[1] NHS. The Eatwell Guide
[2] Gov UK. Great Britain Nutrition and Health Claims (NHC) Register
[3] NHS. Salt in your diet
[4] Gov UK. National Diet and Nutrition Survey 2019 to 2023: report. Published 11 June 2025.
