Doctor suggests 5 easy hacks to eat potatoes without spiking your blood sugar: Adding vinegar to cooling before eating

Hindustan Times

17-05-2025

Potatoes have long been the enemy for people with diabetes or those trying not to spike their blood sugar levels. In a video shared on May 3, Dr Aryanna Amini, MD and a nutrition specialist, talked about five different ways you can eat them without spiking your blood sugar.
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According to Dr Amini, all carbohydrate-rich foods can raise your glucose level. However, there are a few hacks that can actually blunt and lower the effect and prevent glycemic spikes. She listed five ways one can enjoy potatoes as part of a balanced diet. Here are the hacks she listed:
A post shared by Aryanna Amini, MD, MS, CAQSM, Dipl. of ABOM (@theskinnyonobesity)
Dr Amini suggested choosing a variety of potatoes with a lower glycemic index, like waxy potatoes (fingerling) over Russet or Idaho varieties. She said that the fingerling potato has a glycemic index of 50-60, as compared to Russet, which has 80-110.
Dr Amini said, 'How you prepare your potatoes matters! Boiling a potato actually lowers the glycemic index as compared to if you mash or bake it.' For example, she explained that baked Russet potatoes have a glycemic index of around 110, while boiled Russet potatoes have a glycemic index of around 80.
Dr Amini suggested cooling the potatoes after boiling, as it lowers the spike even more. 'When you refrigerate white starches, some resistant starch can reform, making it harder to digest, resulting in lower glucose rises, and fewer calories and sugar absorbed, even if you reheat the potato,' she explained.
A boiled and then cooled potato can lower the glycemic spike by 25-30 percent, Dr Amini explained.
Adding fat and protein to your potato will also blunt the glycemic effect. For example, adding something like cheese can also lower glucose spikes.
Dr Amini suggested adding vinegar (which contains acetic acid) to potatoes, which can lower the glucose and insulin spikes. Paired with the above refrigeration hack, adding 15–20 ml of vinegar before or in combination with chilled boiled potatoes decreases their glycemic index by up to 43 percent.
Note to readers: This article is for informational purposes only and not a substitute for professional medical advice. Always seek the advice of your doctor with any questions about a medical condition.