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Sweet potato

Ipomoea batatas

Also known as Kumara, Yam (in US usage), Orange-fleshed sweet potato

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A starchy storage root in the morning glory family, unrelated to the potato. Flesh colour ranges from white through orange to deep purple, and carotenoid content follows that colour closely.

Eye HealthBlood Sugar & Metabolic HealthWeight Management

Potential health benefits

Best supported: Moderate

Ordered by how well the human research supports them — strongest first. A rating describes the state of the evidence, not how impressive the food is. How we rate evidence.

Visual function

Eye Health
Moderate evidence

Research suggests orange-fleshed sweet potato meaningfully improves vitamin A status in populations where deficiency is common, and several field trials in sub-Saharan Africa point the same way. This says nothing about people whose vitamin A status is already adequate.

What may be going on: Beta-carotene is cleaved in the intestinal wall to retinal and then retinol, the form used in the visual cycle and in epithelial maintenance.

Moderate evidence. Several human studies point the same way, with real caveats.

4 sources

Deep research mode adds each paper’s own conclusion and stated limitations.

Blood glucose response

Blood Sugar & Metabolic Health
Limited evidence

Some trials of white-skinned sweet potato extract report small improvements in glycaemic markers in type 2 diabetes. The extract used is not the same as eating the vegetable, and the glucose response to sweet potato itself depends heavily on how it is cooked.

Limited evidence. Early human work, or mostly lab and animal research.

4 sources

Deep research mode adds each paper’s own conclusion and stated limitations.

Body composition

Weight Management
Insufficient evidence

Sweet potato is frequently recommended as a weight-loss carbohydrate. There is no dependable human research showing that substituting it for other starchy foods changes body weight or fat mass.

Insufficient evidence. Not enough human research to say anything useful yet.

3 sources

Deep research mode adds each paper’s own conclusion and stated limitations.

Ask about Sweet potato

Ask about Sweet potato

Answers are written only from the entries on this page — the same nutrients, compounds, claims and citations you can read above. Nothing is added from outside the database, and every answer lists what it was built from.

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Key nutrients

Nutrient content per 100 grams
NutrientAmount% DV
Macronutrients
Calories86 kcal4%
Protein1.57 g3%
Total fat0.05 g0%
Carbohydrate20.1 g7%
Fibre3 g11%
Total sugars4.18 g—
Water77.3 g—
Fats
Saturated fat0.018 g0%
Monounsaturated fat0.0010 g—
Polyunsaturated fat0.014 g—
Cholesterol0 mg0%
EPA (omega-3)0 g—
DHA (omega-3)0 g—
DPA (omega-3)0 g—
Linoleic acid (omega-6)0.013 g—
Vitamins
Vitamin A709 µg79%
Vitamin C2.4 mg3%
Vitamin D0 µg0%
Vitamin E0.26 mg2%
Vitamin K1.8 µg2%
Thiamin (B1)0.078 mg7%
Riboflavin (B2)0.061 mg5%
Niacin (B3)0.557 mg3%
Pantothenic acid (B5)0.8 mg16%
Vitamin B60.209 mg12%
Folate11 µg3%
Vitamin B120 µg0%
Choline12.3 mg2%
Minerals
Calcium30 mg2%
Iron0.61 mg3%
Magnesium25 mg6%
Phosphorus47 mg4%
Potassium337 mg7%
Sodium55 mg2%
Zinc0.3 mg3%
Copper0.151 mg17%
Manganese0.258 mg11%
Selenium0.6 µg1%
Other measured compounds
Beta-carotene8509 µg—
Alpha-carotene7 µg—
Lycopene0 µg—
Lutein + zeaxanthin0 µg—
Caffeine0 mg—
Ash0.99 g—

Nutrient values are per 100 g of the USDA reference entry named on this page and vary with variety, growing conditions, storage and preparation.

Source record: Sweet potato, raw, unprepared (Includes foods for USDA's Food Distribution Program) (USDA FoodData Central, FDC ID 168482).

% DV uses the FDA Daily Values for adults and children aged 4 and over. A dash means no Daily Value has been established for that nutrient.

Bioactive compounds

Compounds present in meaningful amounts. Presence is banded rather than quantified, because whole-food levels vary enormously with variety, growing conditions, storage and preparation.

How preparation changes things

Only effects with real support are listed. If a preparation method is missing, it is because nothing dependable is documented — not because it makes no difference.

  • boiledReduces glycaemic response

    Boiled sweet potato produces a substantially lower glucose response than baked or roasted, because dry heat gelatinises the starch more completely and converts more of it to simple sugars.

  • with fatIncreases beta-carotene absorption

    Adding a source of fat to a sweet potato meal markedly increases the amount of beta-carotene absorbed and converted to vitamin A.

  • cookedIncreases carotenoid bioaccessibility

    Cooking breaks down the cell walls that trap carotenoids, releasing far more beta-carotene for absorption than the raw root would provide.

Things to know

Allergies, interactions and intake concerns. Every food gets this section — a reference where everything is uniformly good is not a reference.

  • Worth knowing

    Potassium in advanced kidney disease

    Sweet potato is a concentrated potassium source. In advanced chronic kidney disease, or alongside ACE inhibitors, angiotensin receptor blockers or potassium-sparing diuretics, intake is usually limited on clinical advice, and boiling in plenty of water reduces the content.

  • Worth knowing

    Oxalate content

    Sweet potato sits in the moderate-to-high oxalate band. People managing recurrent calcium oxalate stones should count it towards their daily total rather than assume vegetables are automatically safe.

  • Too much

    Carotenodermia

    Sustained high intake of orange-fleshed varieties can tint the palms and soles yellow-orange. It is harmless and fades on its own when intake falls.

  • Too much

    Mannitol and FODMAP content

    Sweet potato contains mannitol, and portions above roughly half a cup are commonly flagged as a trigger on low-FODMAP plans for irritable bowel syndrome.