Air fried, baked or boiled sweet potatoes are great for weight loss, as they’re low in calories, contain many nutrients which are involved in energy metabolism and are super filling.
How many calories do sweet potatoes have?
Sweet potato is a starchy, tuberous root vegetable. Even the young leaves are edible.
Above all, sweet potatoes are good for weight loss, as they’re low in calories. Actually, boiled or cooked sweet potatoes in an air fryer have only 76 calories per 100g.[1]
If you want to lose weight, you should avoid French fries and other fried foods, though. Fried foods have many calories. Just a tbsp of vegetable oil has about 125 calories!
So, air fried sweet potatoes are good for weight loss because they’re low in calories.
Sweet potatoes keep us full for a long time
Moreover, sweet potatoes are good for weight loss because they’re filling.
First, sweet potatoes are great dietary sources of fiber. A serving provides more than 20% of the Daily Value (DV). High fiber intake has been linked to reduced risk of obesity! Prefer to consume sweet potatoes with the skin. The skin is the richest part in fiber.
Additionally, sweet potatoes have a relatively low Glycemic Index. It highly depends on the cultivar and the cooking method, though. The Glycemic Load of sweet potato is less than 19. Foods with low glycemic load are good for weight control. They tend to be more filling, and don’t spike glucose levels. They should be a key part of any calorie-restricted diet.[2,3]
If you want to lose weight, you should eat air fried sweet potatoes with foods high in protein. Foods high in water, fiber, and protein are the most filling. Sweet potato cooked in an air fryer is 80% water![4]
Vitamins in sweet potatoes burn fat
Furthermore, sweet potatoes are particularly rich in vitamin C (12.7 mg per 100g), potassium (229 mg), vitamin A (784 mcg), and beta-carotene (9,406 mcg).
Actually, sweet potatoes are among the richest foods in beta-carotene and other carotenoids. They contain more beta-carotene than carrots! Carotenoids are beneficial for preserving a healthy body weight. They regulate the formation of body fat tissue.[5]
Moreover, a cup of boiled sweet potatoes contains about 32 mg of vitamin C. This dose is 35% of the DV. Adequate amounts of vitamin C may burn belly fat, regulate glucose, reduce inflammation, and promote the secretion of hormones that burn fat. Hence, vitamin C deficiency may lead to obesity.[6]
