What is the paleo diet?
Potatoes are tubers or white vegetables that grow underground. Potatoes are a tuber and were part of the early human diet, so you can eat them on the paleo diet.
The paleo diet is sometimes called the caveman or Stone Age diet. It’s a popular diet, but there’s considerable confusion and disagreement about acceptable foods, including potatoes. So are potatoes paleo? The answer is yes, though some people choose not to eat them.
The paleo diet is a modern take on the way of eating during the Paleolithic era or the Stone Age, about 2.5 million years ago. Advocates for this diet say humans stopped evolving around the time farming started, so we can’t handle the processed foods we eat today. They say this is the reason for chronic disease and claim that returning to ancient ways of eating can improve health.
The basis of the diet is that you eat only the types of foods Paleo people ate. They were hunter-gatherers but learned to cook over a fire and use stone tools for better access to food.
Since they didn’t farm, they were unlikely to eat certain foods, like grains and dairy. Instead, they ate meat, seafood, vegetables, seeds, nuts, roots, tubers, insects, honey, and fruit.
It doesn’t make sense to eat exactly this way, though. Food access looks very different because of modern farming, storage, and cooking methods. Plus, food today doesn't resemble wild, prehistoric foods. Instead, the goal is to eat natural, whole, and unprocessed foods, avoid grains and dairy, and focus on nonstarchy foods with a low impact on your blood sugar.
Paleo diet confusion
Claims about the paleo diet have caused a lot of controversy for a few reasons. First, some nonmedical professionals have exaggerated the benefits and claimed the diet could cure incurable conditions like autism. These claims are untrue.
Second, there has been conflicting and confusing information about what to eat. Some people mistakenly believe that Paleo people were carnivores when they were hunter-gatherers and mostly plant-based eaters. During this era, they only ate meat as they could hunt it or if it was available, such as in communities near the sea.
Other versions ban other food groups like legumes, but research suggests early people probably ate legumes too. They probably also ate grains like wild barley, which they likely ground into flour and cooked over a fire.
Still, despite the confusion, the paleo diet can be a healthy style of eating for a short period. While excluding foods could lead to vitamin and mineral deficiencies, the diet focuses on natural, whole, and unprocessed foods rich in fiber and nutrients that could promote gut health.
So, are potatoes paleo?
In short, yes. Potatoes are tubers or white vegetables that grow underground. Paleo people regularly ate tubers and wild potatoes.
Some people list potatoes as unacceptable because they're a starchy high-glycemic food. But ancient hunter-gatherer communities relied on the calories and carbohydrates in potatoes and other tubers for energy.
While there is some disagreement over foods, there isn’t one true or correct paleo diet. If you want to eat unprocessed potatoes, you can. They are paleo-friendly, though some people don’t eat them.
Processed vs. unprocessed potatoes
The key to following this diet is to eat fresh, natural foods. This means you’ll have to avoid potatoes cooked or fried with processed oils, refined sugar, or other additives that aren’t paleo-friendly.
Some potato foods to avoid include:
- French fries
- Potato chips
- Frozen potatoes
- Instant or dehydrated potatoes
Some argue that frozen potatoes are allowed because the nutrients are preserved. In theory, you could eat most of these foods as long as you cook them correctly. You should bake or fry paleo potatoes without butter, salt, or processed oils. You should make or eat baked, mashed, and scalloped potatoes without dairy.
You also can’t replace dairy with modern plant milk, as these drinks are highly processed. Homemade nut milk could be an option if you sweeten it with honey rather than sugar.
Health benefits of potatoes in a paleo diet
Some studies show that eating a paleo diet can improve blood fat levels, weight loss, and blood pressure, but there are problems with these studies. The studies were short and only had a few participants, suggesting they don’t show long-term results. The overall results are mixed, though promising.
There are key benefits of eating potatoes within the paleo diet, though. Some people suggest that they’re too starchy, but the starch and fiber could benefit the friendly bacteria in your gut.
Vitamins and minerals
For many people, potatoes are a staple food and can provide some vitamins and minerals. A cooked potato contains:
- Vitamin B6: 15% of the recommended daily amount, or RDA
- Vitamin C:14% of the RDA
- Potassium: 12% of the RDA
- Magnesium:7% of the RDA
Fiber
Potatoes aren’t a significant source of fiber in general, but eating them with the skin on can provide some fiber, especially if you eat them regularly. The fiber in potatoes is found in the cell walls of the thick potato skin. Where 100 grams of cooked potatoes without skin provide 1.8 grams of fiber, the same amount of potatoes with the skin provides 2.1 grams.
Resistant starch is a type of fermentable fiber found in potatoes. It acts as a prebiotic and feeds the friendly bacteria in your gut. Resistant starch adds bulk to your stool without causing a laxative effect.
Early research also suggests that resistant starch can help normalize cholesterol and blood sugar levels. It might also lower inflammation in the gut, though more research is necessary. However, it feeds the bacteria in your gut and can help you build a healthy, diverse microbiome.
Bottom line: Potatoes are paleo
While some disagree, potatoes are a tuber and were part of the early human diet. Potatoes are starchy, high-glycemic vegetables, which some people avoid, but are a source of vitamins, minerals, and fiber.
Talk to your doctor or nutritionist if you’re thinking of starting a paleo diet for your health. Some people make exaggerated claims about the paleo diet that might not hold up to research. But the paleo diet shows promise and can help you focus on healthy, whole, unprocessed foods.
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Medically Reviewed on 1/25/2023
References
SOURCES:
Advances in Nutrition: "White Potatoes, Human Health, and Dietary Guidance."
Australian Family Physician: "Cutting through the Paleo hype: The evidence for the Palaeolithic diet."
Canadian Society of Intestinal Research: "Resistant Starch."
Challa, H., Bandlamudi, M., Uppaluri, K. StatPearls, "Paleolithic Diet," StatPearls Publishing, 2022.Colorado State University School of Public Health: "Potatoes."
Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition: "Potatoes and human health."
Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health: "Diet Review: Paleo Diet for Weight Loss," "Fiber."
Nutrients: "Paleolithic Diet—Effect on the Health Status and Performance of Athletes?"
PLoS One: "Gut microbiome response to a modern Paleolithic diet in a Western lifestyle context," "Hunter-Gatherer Energetics and Human Obesity."
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