With its pretty purple color and naturally sweet and nutty flavor, ube, also known as purple yam, has drawn the attention of health enthusiasts and food lovers around the globe. A staple in Filipino cuisine and native to Southeast Asia, ube is now making its way to every other food item, from ice creams to smoothies and bakery items. And it's the biggest sign that you should add it to your diet.
Unlike other starchy vegetables, purple yams contain antioxidants, vitamin C, vitamin B, Iron, proteins, sodium, potassium, and many other valuable nutrients. Therefore, they offer remarkable health benefits, including maintaining blood sugar levels and blood pressure, protecting against chronic diseases like cancer, improving gut health, and much more. If you want to know about these benefits in detail, keep reading!
Nutrition Profile of Purple Yam
Are you still wondering, ‘Is ube healthy? Then, you should know that Purple Yam is not just an ordinary starchy root but has all the essential nutrients to support your overall health. It is a great source of complex carbohydrates, potassium, vitamins, and fiber, delivering nutrition in every bite. One cup of cooked purple yam can provide you with the following nutrients:
- Purple yam calories: 140 calories
- Carbohydrates: 27 grams
- Proteins: 1 gram
- Fats: 0.1 grams
- Fiber: 4 grams
- Sodium: 0.83% of the Daily Value
- Potassium: 13.5% of the Daily Value
- Calcium: 2% of the DV
- Iron: 4% of the Daily Value
- Vitamin C: 40% of the Daily Value
- Vitamin A: 4% of the DV
Ube (Purple Yam) Health Benefits
Purple yams or ube are versatile and loaded with antioxidants and valuable compounds, offering various health benefits. They help regulate blood sugar levels and blood pressure, reduce asthma symptoms, improve gut health, and more. Here, we have mentioned some purple yam benefits in detail:
Rich in Antioxidants
Purple yams are rich in antioxidants, including anthocyanins, which protect your cells from damage by free radicals. Free radical damage is linked to many chronic conditions like diabetes, cancer, heart disease, and neurodegenerative disorders. It is seen that consuming purple yams increases antioxidant levels by up to 35% and prevents diseases. It offers protection against multiple types of cancer, including colon cancer, lung cancer. And that’s why you should add ube to your diet.
Manages Blood Sugar Levels
Ube, the purple yam, contains flavonoids, which help lower blood sugar levels, especially in people with type 2 diabetes. Purple yam extract also reduces oxidative stress and insulin resistance by protecting the insulin-producing cells in the pancreas. Purple yam has a low glycemic index, measuring how fast the sugars get absorbed into the bloodstream. A low glycemic index means low and maintained blood sugar levels and various scientific studies have proven this.
Regulates Blood Pressure
High blood pressure is a major risk factor for strokes and heart attacks, and that's why your blood pressure must be well-regulated. For that, you should consume purple yams, which lower blood pressure. A test tube study revealed that purple yams contain antioxidants that help regulate blood pressure, similar to that of blood pressure-lowering medicine. It also converts angiotensin 1 to angiotensin 2, a compound responsible for high blood pressure.
Improves Gut Health
Purple yams are rich in complex carbohydrates and resistant starch. They also increase the number of Bifidobacteria, useful gut bacteria that promote gut health and help break down fiber and carbohydrates. They also reduce the risk of gut disorders like colorectal cancer, irritable bowel syndrome, and inflammatory bowel disease. The effect of ube on mice was studied, showing that it had anti-inflammatory effects and reduced colitis symptoms.
Improves Symptoms of Asthma
Asthma is a chronic inflammatory disease of the airways. Research suggests that a diet rich in vitamins A and C reduces the risk of asthma or reduces its symptoms, and purple yams are rich in these vitamins. Studies reveal that vitamin A and C deficiency lead to asthma, which increases by 12% in deficient individuals. So, if you are asthmatic or have any allergies, you should add purple yam to your diet.
Promotes Skin Health
Ube is good for your skin as it contains antioxidants and vitamin C and is anti-inflammatory. Antioxidants like anthocyanins fight free radicals, which cause premature aging, wrinkles, and dull skin. These antioxidants protect your skin cells from environmental damage and oxidative stress. Vitamin C promotes collagen production and makes you look young and fresh. Moreover, the anti-inflammatory compounds in ube reduce skin puffiness, redness, and irritation and fight acne. Also, ube keeps your skin hydrated and supports an even skin tone.
How To Add Purple Yam To Your Diet?
Now that you know about the benefits of purple yam, it's time to make it a part of your diet. The versatile and brightly colored tubers can be consumed in a variety of ways so that you don't get bored. You can boil, mash, fry, or bake them. Add them in place of other starchy vegetables when making:
- Stews
- Soups
- Stir-fries
Interestingly, in the Philippines, purple yam is added to flour, which is used to make many desserts. If you or your kids don’t like ube as it is, you can make a powder and then use it in rice, cakes, desserts, and jams to give your food a vibrant color and delicious flavor. You can also make a puree out of it, especially if you have a kid at home. You need to cut the yams into small pieces, boil them, mash them, and then add them to the baby food.
Conclusion:
Purple yam is more than just a trendy vegetable that you see on your social media feed. It contains vitamins, antioxidants, calcium, fiber, and proteins, providing impressive health benefits. From improving skin texture and regulating blood pressure and blood sugar levels to improving gut health and reducing asthma symptoms, ube is a complete package. You can add it to your diet in various forms, including baked, roasted, mashed, and in salads, cookies, or desserts. So, what are you waiting for?
