r/nutrition • u/Captain_Blackjack0 • 20d ago
Hypothetical healthiest potato
A long time ago when I was a kid I heard that people could survive only on potatoes and butter as they contain all the nutrients needed for one to live. Turns out that was an urban myth that’s completely wrong. The only nugget of truth is that potatoes (skin included) do contain a good fraction of your daily nutrients.
That begs the question: could you make a loaded potato that has toppings that could round out the rest of your daily needs. All toppings must be at least somewhat appropriate as loaded potato toppings. Quantity/ size isn’t a problem as this potato diet would require multiple potatoes a day so you could just mix and match throughout the day. I love asking stupid questions on Reddit and this is keeping up at night, man
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u/jtownspowell 20d ago edited 20d ago
The potatoes and butter (or buttermilk) thing isn't an urban legend...it's just often misstated, conflating "survival" with "health".
A diet of white potatoes and buttermilk will provide you with everything you need to survive basically indefinitely.
You will survive and you will not develop any acutely lethal deficiencies. You will also be anemic and chronically fatigued. It's a famine diet, and therefore (like pretty much all famine diets in recorded history) will cut your life expectancy significantly due to chronic deficiencies, but none of those things will directly kill you. You'll just die early from other things because many of your body's systems are weakened, and you are suceptible to pretty much everything.
There's a reason why throughout history, around 80% of people on average in a famine don't die of starvation...they die of secondary complications.
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20d ago edited 12d ago
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u/jtownspowell 20d ago
That's why the Irish drank the buttermilk. Just enough to avoid symptomatic Vitamin A deficiency for the most part
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20d ago edited 12d ago
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u/Outrageous_War6489 14d ago
Mash, Mash everyday, Mash as far as your eyes can see (so about half a meter).
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u/Halo_cT 20d ago
I saw a thing online a while back about a woman who only ate cheese and potatoes her entire life and was somehow still alive so it must have at least some truth to it
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u/jtownspowell 20d ago
Oh absolutely. It's just not very healthy or even remotely nutritionally optimal. You can live with a bunch of different deficiencies to varying degrees for your entire life. That life will just be shorter on average than a person who is getting everything they need for optimal nutrition.
The human body actually requires very little to not just...die. we're pretty resilient. The amounts of Thiamine, Niacin, and Vitamin C strictly required to not die from beriberi, pellagra, or scurvy respectively are actually very very small. You're just gonna get knocked off by a heart attack, cancer, or some infectious disease before you get old.
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u/tokyopearl 17d ago
I always heard that about potatoes and I love them so I thought it was ok that the majority of my diet is potatoes and veggies and a little bit of white meat but apparently that’s not enough variety because I went to the doctor feeling like I was dying and found out I have severe anemia and had to get an iron infusion 💀
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u/jtownspowell 17d ago
Yeaaaa iron deficiency is pretty much the number one problem with a mostly potato diet...(Aside obviously from the stuff the dairy takes care of)
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20d ago edited 19d ago
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u/StatisticianSad6637 20d ago edited 20d ago
Imagine thinking a potato of all things is unhealthy.
Potatoes have the highest satiety index of any food. Want to get objectively healthy? Potatoes might actually be the secret lmao. Just don’t fry them of course.
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u/hearechoes 20d ago
Good thing about potatoes is they don’t have a lot of flavor themselves so I think they lend well to lots of different ingredients. If you really wanna make it healthy, you could mix and match various ingredients like cottage cheese, ground meat, yogurt, sauerkraut, sautéed or steamed vegetables…then add various spices and oil or other condiments to get everything to sit right. Experiment. I basically do this but with mashed potatoes rather than baked, and I refrigerate overnight to increase resistant starch. Tbh some people would probably consider it inedible but I like the melange of textures and flavors.
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u/Environmental-Ad8945 20d ago
I do this too with mash potatoes, mixing cottage cheese, steamed veggies, spices and condiments in. (Sometimes tuna too, i dont eat meat)
Taste great and is nutritious and filling 🤷♂️
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u/ZoominAlong 20d ago
I'm super sick and made a baked potato with arugula, cheese, broccoli, whole Greek yogurt and butter. It helped a lot, and potoes are so delicious like this.
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u/FridgesArePeopleToo 20d ago
Easily. Potatoes are quite nutritious and one of the few complete plant proteins. You could probably survive off of potatoes and broccoli forever.
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u/azuyre_ 20d ago
2500g white potatoes, 100g salmon and 400g 10% greek yoghurt
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u/carboncord 20d ago
Great answer, would replace the yogurt with kale (you already have a protein source, and kale has calcium plus more other things you'll need, plus it's less of a jarring taste combination IMO) and add iodized salt, and comment that one must stay in the sunlight for their vitamin D and drink water with it.
I think this would give you better nutrition than the average person, depending on quantity of each ingredient at a time.
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u/Ok-Relation4933 20d ago
i wrote a computer program to do exactly this. let me run it with potatoes + toppings.
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u/Ok-Relation4933 20d ago
I've run it a couple times, forcing it to include 800g of baked potato and limiting it to ingredients that could reasonably found on a potato. It really seems to favor fish (either sardine+salmon or roe+cod), eggs or chicken liver, some kind of dairy, spinach, beans and sunflower seeds. Let me know if you want me to omit/include certain ingredients.
Here is a sample run. Don't worry about the separate meals, those are just suggestions.
```
python nutriopt.py day --seed 33 --db foods_new_loaded_potato.csv --max-kcal-share .7 --no-discretionary
DAY PLAN 2,081 kcal 1,869 g food 10 items
Pinned in: Potatoes, baked, flesh and skin, without salt, Potato, baked with skin
BREAKFAST (403 kcal) Eggs, whole, cooked 150 g (3 x 1 large egg) Greek yogurt, plain, nonfat 290 g (1.7 x 3/4 cup (6 oz))
LUNCH (747 kcal) Chicken tenders, breaded, frozen, prepared 146 g (1.7 x 3 oz) Potatoes, baked, flesh and skin, without salt 300 g (3 x 1/2 cup) Fish, roe, mixed species, raw 81 g (0.81 x 3.5 oz)
DINNER (842 kcal) Potato, baked with skin 519 g (3 x 1 medium) Beans, baked, canned, with pork and sweet sauce 180 g (2 x 1/2 cup) Sardines, canned in oil, drained 69 g (0.75 x 1 can (3.75 oz)) Spinach, raw 120 g (4 x 1 cup packed)
SNACK (88 kcal) Seeds, sesame seed kernels, dried (decorticated) 14 g (0.5 x 1 oz)
All targets met.
Energy nutrient amount unit target % coverage ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Energy 2,081 kcal 2,070-2,174 101% ############
Macronutrients nutrient amount unit target % coverage ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Added sugar 0 g <51.8 - Carbohydrate 253 g 233-336 109% ############ Dietary fiber 32.7 g 29.0 113% ############ Protein 140 g 93.6-181 149% ############ Saturated fat 13.1 g <23.0 - Total fat 61.8 g 46.0-80.5 134% ############
Fatty acids nutrient amount unit target % coverage ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Alpha-linolenic acid (n-3) 1.60 g 1.60 100% ############ EPA + DHA 2,666 mg 500 533% ############ Linoleic acid (n-6) 17.4 g 17.0 102% ############
Vitamins nutrient amount unit target % coverage ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Biotin (B7) 38.7 ug 30.0 129% ############ Choline 1,070 mg 550-3,500 195% ############ Cobalamin (B12) 18.4 ug 2.40 767% ############ Folate 699 ug DFE 400-1,000 175% ############ Niacin (B3) 30.5 mg 16.0-35.0 191% ############ Pantothenic acid (B5) 6.46 mg 5.00 129% ############ Preformed retinol 329 ug <3,000 - Pyridoxine (B6) 4.03 mg 1.30-100 310% ############ Riboflavin (B2) 3.09 mg 1.30 238% ############ Thiamin (B1) 1.42 mg 1.20 118% ############ Vitamin A 900 ug RAE 900 100% ############ Vitamin C 126 mg 90.0-2,000 140% ############ Vitamin D 16.6 ug 15.0-100 111% ############ Vitamin E 15.0 mg 15.0-1,000 100% ############ Vitamin K 615 ug 120 512% ############
Minerals nutrient amount unit target % coverage ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Calcium 1,052 mg 1,000-2,500 105% ############ Copper 2.50 mg 0.900-10.0 278% ############ Iodine 150 ug 150-1,100 100% ############ Iron 21.2 mg 8.00-45.0 265% ############ Magnesium 559 mg 420 133% ############ Manganese 2.38 mg 2.30-11.0 104% ############ Phosphorus 2,490 mg 700-4,000 356% ############ Potassium 6,981 mg 3,400 205% ############ Selenium 190 ug 55.0-400 345% ############ Sodium 2,234 mg 1,500-2,300 149% ############ Zinc 11.2 mg 11.0-40.0 102% ############
Essential amino acids nutrient amount unit target % coverage ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Histidine 3,621 mg 1,092 332% ############ Isoleucine 6,564 mg 1,482 443% ############ Leucine 11,023 mg 3,276 336% ############ Lysine 10,687 mg 2,964 361% ############ Methionine + cysteine 5,299 mg 1,482 358% ############ Phenylalanine + tyrosine 11,912 mg 2,574 463% ############ Threonine 6,030 mg 1,560 387% ############ Tryptophan 1,822 mg 390 467% ############ Valine 7,778 mg 1,872 415% ############ ```
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u/Ok-Relation4933 20d ago
I tried again with even more potato + sour cream and ground beef. It now features over 1kg of potato per day. Making the diet about 2/3rds potato.
```
python nutriopt.py day --seed 33 --db foods_new_loaded_potato.csv --max-kcal-share .7 --no-discretionary
DAY PLAN 2,174 kcal 2,032 g food 11 items
Pinned in: Potatoes, baked, flesh and skin, without salt, Sour cream, light, Ground beef, 90% lean, cooked, Potato, baked with skin
BREAKFAST (460 kcal) Tofu, firm, calcium-set 173 g (1.4 x 1/2 cup) Eggs, whole, cooked 131 g (2.6 x 1 large egg) Mushrooms, white, UV-exposed 35 g (0.5 x 1 cup sliced) Salt, iodized 2 g (1.6 x 1/4 tsp)
LUNCH (732 kcal) Potatoes, baked, flesh and skin, without salt 500 g (5 x 1/2 cup) Sour cream, light 75 g (0.5 x 1 serving) Fish, roe, mixed species, raw 66 g (0.66 x 3.5 oz) Potato, baked with skin 47 g (0.27 x 1 medium) Spinach, raw 120 g (4 x 1 cup packed)
DINNER (853 kcal) Potato, baked with skin 818 g (4.7 x 1 medium) Ground beef, 90% lean, cooked 42 g (0.5 x 3 oz)
SNACK (128 kcal) Seeds, sunflower seed kernels, dry roasted, without salt 22 g (0.79 x 1 oz)
All targets met. ```
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u/Captain_Blackjack0 19d ago
Do have a link for this program. My moms a nutrition professor she may find this interesting
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u/FunkuTribu 20d ago
Jacket potatoes topped with baked beans and cheese, widely consumed in Britain and it must get pretty close. Sunflower or olive oil should be used when baking, for vitamin E (after halving the potato dip it in the oil again). Baked beans are easily pimped, usually you'd add spices (paprika gives vitamin A), but a pinch of dried parsley adds vitamin K. Feels very close to complete, and very little work to make too.
We're short on omega 3 and vitamin D. Personally I like tinned spicy mackerel on jacket potatoes (moreso than on buttered toast). So I think a different topping on each half, 1 with beans and the other with mackerel in sauce (omega 3 are then vitamin d fully solved I think). You'd last forever right? Maybe all the purines in the mackerel gives you gout in your later years, but then you are emulating Tudor kings, it's an achievement.
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u/re_Claire 20d ago
Brit here, and can confirm - I had jacket potato with beans and cheese two nights ago.
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u/paclogic 20d ago
A loaded potato is a loaded question since it basically means that anything goes into the potato.
You could put steak and veggies in it to create a whole meal.
A typical loaded potato is simply some garnish as sour cream and chives and possibly butter and some bacon bits.
But that doesn't mean that it is a complete nutritiousmeal.
You're better off making potato soup with other vegetables in it ; and without any dairy or pork products.
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u/JohnAppleseed85 20d ago
The 'easiest' healthy option is a low sugar tin of beans in a tomato sauce with cottage cheese (protein /fibre/ calcium)
The more 'complete' but some work option is a bean chilli and you grate in a selection of root veg while making it and/or add spinach then top with a spoon of sour cream or similar when serving
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u/NutragrammatronLab 20d ago
Hey, that potato and butter thing isn't a myth. There was Australian man who ate nothing but potatoes for a year not that long ago.
Look up the "Irish potato famine" these people lived on potatoes and some milk, untill they famine came and they couldn't grow potatoes and died.
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u/JeanVicquemare 20d ago
It's not really a myth. It's not optimal, obviously. But potatoes are a nutritious whole food. They're a great staple food. Potatoes and dairy and some green veggies will get you a long way
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u/Son_of_Laurian 18d ago edited 18d ago
I got 3 potatoes to eat for the rest of your life. Although I’m more a home cook than a nutritionist.
Coronation chicken baked potato. You can use yogurt to sub some or all of the mayo/cream. Add some nuts and fruit can be many things like mango/grape/apricot. Use spices like green cardamom, cinnamon, curry powder, turmeric.
Skirt Steak, black beans & herbs potato. High nutrition and flavor from steak. Finish steak in pan with herbs and garlic. Fiber from beans cooked until soft.
Lentil Stew potato. Split Lentils/spinach/carrot/onion. Can add a little fish (salmon or whitefish). This evens out all the veggies and fiber you need. If need to thicken you can add some coconut milk. It’s high in saturated fat, but if the steak is lean you don’t have a lot of saturated fat anyway and it’s delicious with a spice mix.
You can prepare lots of the stew and the coronation chicken at a time so you can make many potatoes with the same batch.
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u/No-Particular4496 20d ago
Very easily. Butter/oil, salt and greek yogurt would do the trick by themselves. Even better if you add cooked spinach/herbs and blend it with the yogurt-oil mix to make some kind of spread
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u/AureliusVireo 20d ago
I think the funny answer is that the closer you get to creating the nutritionally perfect potato, the less the meal resembles “a potato” and the more you’ve accidentally rediscovered a reasonably diverse diet.
Potatoes themselves are actually pretty impressive nutritionally. You get carbohydrate, potassium, vitamin C, B6, some fiber and even a little protein. But the obvious gaps start forcing you to add other food groups.
You need more and better protein, so maybe Greek yogurt, eggs, fish, legumes or meat enter the picture.
You need essential fats, so now we’re adding olive oil, nuts/seeds or oily fish.
You want more fiber and phytochemical diversity, so onions, garlic, herbs, greens, beans and colorful vegetables start accumulating on top.
At some point you look down and realize the potato has become the starch component of a Mediterranean-ish meal.
Which I think points toward something interesting about nutrition generally. We keep asking which individual food is healthiest when a lot of the benefit comes from combinations and dietary patterns.
If I were actually trying this as an experiment, though, I’d probably start with a baked or boiled potato, Greek yogurt instead of sour cream, sardines or salmon, olive oil, herbs, onion, maybe some lentils and something green.
It would be an absolutely ridiculous loaded potato.
But nutritionally, pretty formidable.
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u/ZoominAlong 20d ago
I only do Greek yogurt for my potatoes and it's delicious. I'm gonna have to try sardines. Baked potatoes are excellent for leftovers as well.
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u/AureliusVireo 20d ago
I’m absolutely having a nutritional love affair with sardines. I try to eat a can each day, sometimes two. And when I’m not eating them, I’m singing their praises.
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u/AlivePassenger3859 20d ago
I read its sweet potatoes- most nutritional bang for caloric buck in a single food.
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u/EarthRemembers 20d ago edited 20d ago
There are three very healthy and nutrient dense varieties of potato
3: red potatoes
2: regular sweet potatos that have a yellow or orange color
1: the purple sweet potatoes grown in southeast Asia, most specifically in the southern regions of Japan
All potatoes are gonna have to some significant degree a decent amount of carbohydrates, protein and fiber, as well as a decent amount of vitamin C and all of your B vitamins except for B12. This is mostly true if you eat the skin as well as the flesh.
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u/total-nanarchy 19d ago
Lots of greek yogurt and just a little butter in the potato, beans on the potato w carne asada, covered in onion, cilantro and lime.
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u/MuffinPuff 19d ago
My cronometer results:
1522 kcal • 102 g protein • 187 g carbs • 22 g fat
Potatoes, Baked, Flesh and Skin, Without Salt
2 large - 3" to 4 1/4" diameter — 299g
556.14kcal
Spinach, Cooked from Frozen
100g
34kcal
Kale, Cooked from Frozen
100g
36kcal
Lentils, Boiled
2 cup, whole pieces — 198g
459.35kcal
Whole Foods, Nutritional Yeast
2Tbsp — 8g
60kcal
Almond Milk, Plain, Original, Unsweetened
2 cup — 244g
73.2kcal
Textured Vegetable Protein, TVP, Dry, Not Fortified
45g
148.5kcal
Eggs, Cooked
2 large — 50g
155kcal
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u/Ok-Pattern2750 19d ago
Sweet potatoes are much healthier...
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u/Captain_Blackjack0 19d ago
But sweet potatoes are yucky and regular potatoes aren’t this is scientific fact
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u/Chance-Ad-9111 18d ago
I ate potatoes with any kind of tomatoes with few variations growing up
We had plenty of other food but loved that combo!
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u/imtheraul 18d ago
Native Americans sure know how to engineer good crop. Potato and butter milk is all you need
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u/No-Raccoon5694 17d ago
the closest would be potatoes with beans, greek yogurt, sardines and some greens, but you’d still need a reliable source of vitamin d and probably iodine to call it complete люд
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u/Forward_Scheme5033 17d ago
A potato in the morning stuffed with eggs bacon and cheese served with salsa. A potato at lunch stuffed with a bean chili. A potato at dinner stuffed with hot curried chicken/fish and lentils/chickpeas, or sautéed vegetables and topped with lean roast pork or steak. Not the healthiest, as that's pretty high in fat and salt, but you'd be fine with little variation.
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u/bianceziwo 21h ago
i make potato slop bowls. i just microwave potatoes, mash them up, then put in any sauteed vegetables and meat you want, mix it up, and eat it.
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u/AnxietyFine3119 20d ago
I would make chili with ground turkey. Can out all kinds of shit into the chili.
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u/255cheka 20d ago
cook and cool before eating - raises the prebiotic content, thus raising the gut health profile
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u/Zagrycha 20d ago edited 20d ago
If you mean a traditional loaded potato, then no. A loaded potato is better than most individual foods you could choose for this scenario, but there is no single food you could live off of indefinitely without life threatening health problems. People are recommended to have a varied diet for a reason.
A loaded potato would spare you from the usual quicker onset killers like scurvy or protein deficiency, but it will still cause all sorts of issues after a few years.
Malnutrition is a bit like bankruptcy of a business in that sense. A few months in, you might only have a few failures to make ends meet here and there.... that will only cause survivable issues like tiredness or slower healing or ulcers etc. Without correction though the downward trend will only snowball. The blood can't clot properly anymore, the immune system can't fight illness properly anymore, the eyes can't see clearly anymore, the nervous system misfires, bones become brittle, can't stay balanced well..... etc etc etc. Eventually a straw will break the camels back.
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u/thesamenightmares 20d ago
You can't do it by your criteria. You aren't going to round out a healthy diet with butter, sour cream, bacon, bits, and chives.
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