To make it immediately clear: fries are not healthy. But there are positive points that don’t make you feel guilty.
Chips
We love fries so much that a whopping 41 percent of the entire national population eats fries at least once a week. It’s just not very nutritious, even though it’s made from potato. During frying, the composition of the potato changes quite a bit.
The potato
Potatoes are in the bracket of five because they contain a lot of vitamins B and C and minerals such as phosphorus and potassium. This makes boiled potatoes good for the nervous system, blood pressure, resistance and metabolism of humans. They also help with the proper functioning of the intestines, because they contain many probiotics: this is food for healthy intestinal bacteria. So potatoes are healthy, but how much of the healthy food remains after frying?
Frying
The water in potatoes is largely replaced by frying fat during the making of fries, which greatly increases the number of calories. You therefore consume about four times as many calories per hundred grams. Boiled potatoes also ensure that you feel full for longer, so you don’t eat too much of them. You can eat fries endlessly, so if you want to lose weight, this snack is not a good choice.
Positive
Yet there is good news: potatoes actually contain more of some nutrients when you fry them. For example, there is more potassium and vitamin C in fries than in boiled potatoes. Potassium is good for blood pressure and fluid balance in the body, and also ensures that nerve impulses are properly conducted. Vitamin C protects against diseases and helps against fatigue. Because the water in potatoes evaporates during frying, the weight of the potatoes decreases. Some nutrients still remain the same in number. So if you eat fries, you get more of those vitamins such as vitamin C and minerals such as potassium per gram.
Healthy options
So fries are still not healthy, but they do have positive properties. Do you feel bad when you eat it? These tips will help you make a healthier choice:
- Not too much salt: Fries contain more potassium than boiled potatoes, but if you then add more salt, it is still bad for blood pressure. Therefore limit the amount of salt.
- Healthy side dishes: Instead of fried snacks with fries, it is better to opt for healthy side dishes, such as chicken wings, beef or vegetables.
- Do not fry: Some are absolutely against the air fryer, but it turns out that food from the air fryer contains no less than seventy percent less fat. And less fat means fewer calories.
- Less sauce: Option for less sauce, choose a light version or one without sugar, or make your own sauce. For example, you can make mayonnaise by mixing low-fat yogurt and a healthy oil.
