RE S EARCH Potatoes keep you young It was at the end of last year that we already heard the news via the RTL4 television channel that the consumption of potatoes is going to increase. Now, at the beginning of ‘The Year of the Potato’ we have more incredible potato news for you, for it was the American researcher Roy Navarre of Minnesota University who recently discovered that our much-loved potato contains more than sixty important substances. So, our new slogan will be: ‘Potatoes keep you young’. W hen you ask people what kind of nutrients a potato contains, most of them think only about starches and carbohydrates. People who know a bit more about nutrients may also answer vitamins and minerals. However, the American researcher Roy Navarre recently discovered that the potato contains many more valuable substances for the inner man. He summarises them as ‘phenolic compounds’. If you are familiar with dietetics, you know that these compounds also include elements with anti-oxidant properties. Substances against ageing Antioxidants play an important role in the human body. Because we live in air, our body cells are continuously exposed to oxygen. Oxygen is an element we cannot do without. However, it can sometimes cause negative reactions in the body as well: for example, when free radicals are produced in our metabolism. These are molecules that quickly want to react with other molecules and produce a chemical compound. In doing so, they can cause an acceleration of temporary and/ or local growing processes in the body cells. This may lead to cancer or other types of disorders. Free radicals also play a role in the ageing process of the body. The positive role of antioxidants is that they can prevent reactions with oxygen as a result of which fewer free radicals can develop. Just as the antioxidant ascorbic acid (vitamin C) can be added to apple sauce to prevent decay, the body can use antioxidants against the ageing and deformation of body cells. The best-known antioxidants are the vitamins A, C and E, but also the minerals zinc and selenium. Vegetables that contain masses of antioxidants are curly kale, beetroot, red chilli peppers, broccoli, spinach, potatoes and maize. Positive effect on disorders of the respiratory system. In recent years, Navarre has researched a hundred different potato varieties – among which some wild ones - for their substances. At the present moment, the number of discovered phytochemicals and vitamins is sixty, among which a few that are well-known such as the vitamins C, B1, B2, B3, and various minerals such as potassium and sodium, but also less well-known substances such as flavonoids and kukoamines. Flavonoids are known to have an antioxidant effect like A, C and E vitamins. The prophylactic effect of vegetables and fruit against cancer The American researcher Roy Navarre recently discovered that the potato contains many more valuable substances for the inner man, among which substances with an antioxidant effect. They play a positive role, among other things, by delaying the ageing processes in the body. 14 Potato World 2009 • number 3 Pagina 13
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