Pass the potatoes, or take a pass? Here's expert advice

If you say "potato," and then say "healthy," some people might call your thinking half-baked.

At best, potatoes often are seen as a starchy vegetable that lacks the status of dietary rock stars like leafy greens or carrots. At worst, taters are the basis for all kinds of salty, fatty snacks – and a metaphor for mindless inactivity.

But couch varieties aside, potatoes have a place in a healthy diet, nutrition experts say. Spoiler alert: Nobody will be offering a free pass to supersize your fries. But you can find other ways to enjoy them on your holiday table or year-round – particularly if you pay attention to preparation.

"The potato is not something to be feared," said Dr. Emily Johnston, a research assistant professor at the New York University Grossman School of Medicine. She studies diabetes prevention in older adults and has researched potatoes and their health effects.

The spud's modern connection to laziness ignores its history as a world conqueror. Although potatoes were domesticated in South America's Andes at least 5,000 years ago, they didn't cross the Atlantic until the 1500s. They nourished a hungry Europe, fueling a population boom that led to the Industrial Revolution.

Today, potatoes are the most-consumed vegetable in the U.S. – just ahead of the tomato, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. (Sing now if you must, but people who look into such things say hardly anybody pronounces it "pa-TAH-to.")

The plain white potato's reputation as an unhealthy food also contrasts with some of the facts, Johnston said.

They are classified as a starchy vegetable, along with corn and yams. Starches are an "important component of the diet that is sometimes...