Every five years, the United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the USDA publish the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, a collection of evidence-based recommendations to promote overall health and reduce the risk of chronic diseases. This generally includes commonsense advice about limiting one’s alcohol intake, monitoring portion size and eating a colorful variety of fruits and vegetables. However, some recent reports have farmers, trade groups and even politicians really concerned about what information will be contained in the next set of guidelines — specifically when it comes to potatoes.
Currently, the government classified potatoes as a vegetable, but there has been speculation the 2025-2030 Dietary Guidelines for Americans could recategorize them as a grain. Some public health authorities, such as Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, have already removed potatoes from the vegetable category, specifically because of how they impact blood sugar.
