Side of fries, please!

French fries...good ole' French fries. You love em' and you hate em' all at the same time. They are so tasty and greasy and salty and fulfilling. The important question is, should you really be eating them? Well, I hate to break it to you, but you might not like my answer.

Potatoes are a health food, but unless you're eating just the potato as is, it's probably not going to be beneficial to your health, especially in the form of a fry. Several experts from all around the country have examined the infamous French fry and came to the conclusion that if you're asking yourself whether or not to get the fries, your answer should be "no."

In order to turn a potato into a fry, not much is involved, but a lot is changed. You fry it and salt it and most importantly, you're taking away it's most healthy part: the skin. The skin is where you'll find all the nutrients and fibers, because the actual potato inside is just starch. So from point A (the raw potato) to point B (the French fry), you have completely altered the vegetable and made it into a food with no nutritional value at all.

The fatty and salty fries don't even begin to exemplify how many calories you can rack up in one sitting. Normally, fries go hand-in-hand with ketchup, which has tons of sugar. Or the fries get covered in some sort of seasoning, or you have a mix of both.

Sweet potato fries
Photo credit: dailyburn.com

We get it. It is very hard to try and just quit eating something like French fries, but there are ways around it! Healthier options that still give you the satisfaction.

If you've never tried a sweet potato fry before, you're seriously missing out. The best part about them is that they can actually be healthy for you. Now, this does all depend on how they are prepared, but if you really want those fries, here is your best solution.

The sweet potato, unlike the regular potato, has higher percentages of key vitamins and minerals like calcium, Vitamins C and A and fiber.

In order to get the health benefits from these spuds, rather than frying them, you can bake them. If you bake them and then give them a quick broil, you'll get the same crispy effect that the fryer will have. If you're looking for some extra flavor, you can add a spice or a sea salt.

Fries don't have to be completely out of your life, but they do need to be put on the back-burner sometimes. Although they are delicious, they can really add up quick and have you feeling bloated and lazy.

Next time, skip the fries or whip up some that aren't going to take a toll on your body.