RICE OR SWEET POTATO

Brown Rice or Rweet Potato

Rice vs. Couscous or Sweet Potato

Choosing a starch to accompany your chicken or fish main course ? Brown rice and sweet potatoes are nutrient-rich foods that are good dishes to complement your protein and vegetable selections.

However, these two starches enjoy different nutrient profiles and your choice may depend on the health benefits you want to emphasize. Use the digital scales to get the right weight of these health food stars.

Calories, Carbohydrates and Fiber

In a 100-gram serving, which equals about 1/2 cup, cooked brown rice provides more calories than a simple baked sweet potato, with 112 calories versus 90.
It also contains slightly more carbohydrates, with 24 grams in the rice and 21 in the potato.
Sweet potato scores higher than rice for fiber, giving it 13 percent of the daily value (DV) in a 2,000-calorie diet, while brown rice provides only 7 percent. Weighing foods with proper digital scales
Fiber has numerous benefits, including maintaining healthy bowel movements, helping with weight control, and helping to lower cholesterol.
However, don’t dismiss brown rice because of its low fiber content. According to a study published in Plant Foods for Human Nutrition in 2014, fiber in brown rice increases from 6 to 14 percent when rice is germinated.

Vitamins in Rice or Sweet Potato

A serving of brown rice or sweet potato offers a potpourri of vitamins to maintain health. Because brown rice is a whole grain, its vitamin B content is still intact, and one serving offers small amounts of these nutrients.

Sweet potato, however, offers twice as much B-5 and B-6, giving you 9 percent and 14 percent of DV, respectively. Vitamin B-5 (pantothenic acid) helps metabolize food, while B-6 (pyridoxine) supports red blood cell development and brain health.

Sweet potato is the best choice for two vitamins that brown rice does not offer at all. In half a cup of sweet potato, you will get almost 400 percent of the daily value of vitamin A, mainly in the form of beta-carotene, a phytonutrient that gives the potato its bright orange color.

You will also get one-third of the DV for vitamin C. Both are antioxidants; vitamin A supports tissue and bone health, while vitamin C helps the body absorb iron and heal wounds.

Mineral Content in Rice or Sweet Potato

Both brown rice and sweet potato provide minerals in your diet. Brown rice is richer in magnesium and manganese, with 11 and 55 percent of the daily value compared to 7 and 25 for sweet potato.

Your body needs magnesium for strong bones and to keep your nerves and muscles healthy. A trace mineral, manganese promotes healthy bones, too.

A sweet potato outshines brown rice in potassium content, offering 14 percent of the daily value, seven times more than brown rice.

Potassium is an electrolyte mineral that helps regulate fluids in the body and contributes to nerve and muscle function, as well as heart health. These minerals are weighed on laboratory balances for use.

Accompanying a Healthy Diet: Rice or Sweet Potato

Adding butter to your rice or potato raises your calorie count and contributes saturated fat to your garnish. Instead, try a dash of olive oil on your rice and savor it with fresh herbs like basil and parsley.

Good additions to your sweet potato include cinnamon or ginger, or just a little sea salt and black pepper.

You can also season with a pinch of cayenne or red bell pepper flakes. A little healthy fat, such as olive oil, helps the body absorb the potato’s rich supply of vitamin A, a fat-soluble vitamin.

The food industry uses appropriate weighing methods for these products, such as the use of crane hooks on industrial scales and hook scales.

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