Kamote is one of the important root crops in the country and often a staple among people in rural areas.
Kamote or sweet potato is also one of favorite afternoon snacks (camote cue) as well as variant in ginatang halo-halo.
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Despite the name “sweet”, kamote and other root crops are beneficial food for diabetics as it help to stabilize blood sugar levels and lower insulin resistance.
Besides simple starches, sweet potatoes are rich in complex carbohydrates, dietary fiber, beta carotene (a vitamin A equivalent nutrient), vitamin C, and vitamin B6.
Pink, yellow and green varieties are high in carotene, the precursor of vitamin A.
But did you know that zapping your camote with an electric current before you eat can boost its antioxidant levels by as much as 60 percent?
Lead researcher Kazunori Hironaka of the University of the Ryukyus, Nishihara in Okinawa, Japan said electrocuting kamote doesn’t change the taste.
They bathed the sweet potatoes in salty water and then passed various currents through the water and spuds for five minutes. The electricity, they said, releases the antioxidants that are bound in the fiber.
Sweet potatoes have high levels of polyphenols - even before they get zapped. Antioxidants such as polyphenols are thought to help mop up damaging free radicals, which have been linked to cancer and other diseases.
Source: Journal News
