Posted by kathryn in A Balanced Diet, Vegetables and Q & A Thursday

Melanie, the British dietician from Dietriffic, asks about potatoes:

we classify potatoes as a vegetable, however we group it together with the breads and cereals in relation to the food pyramid”, what’s the situation in Australia?

I think we’re as loose with our classification of potatoes as you are in the UK! Yes, potatoes are a vegetable and often included in the classic Australian dinner structure of “meat and three veg”. Our standard nutritional recommendations include having five servings of vegies per day – and potatoes are on the list of vegie options.

However, they are also often talked about with the “carb” foods – bread, rice, pasta, etc – as something you may need to limit, that can have an affect on your blood sugar levels, etc, etc. Like legumes, it’s one of those foods that doesn’t fit neatly into one classification.

Personally, when I’m with clients, I almost always talk about potatoes in the bread / rice / staples category, because of their high carbohydrate and kilojoule content. I tend to emphasise other vegetables to fulfill the daily quota.

31 May, 2007