Is sweet potato good for diabetics?
Baked sweet potato is a high-glycemic food: its glycemic index is 87 (median of 11 lab tests, range 82 to 94). A serving of 1 cup (7.1 oz, 200 g) has 41.4 g of carbs and 6.6 g of fiber, a glycemic load of about 30.
This page is for people with diabetes or prediabetes. The glycemic index compares foods, and the glycemic load on this page adjusts it for a real serving. If you follow a meal plan from your care team, use these numbers within it.
Carbs in a serving
| Per 1 cup (7.1 oz, 200 g) | Amount |
|---|---|
| Total carbohydrate | 41.4 g |
| Fiber | 6.6 g |
| Sugars | 13 g |
| Carbs minus fiber | 34.8 g |
| Glycemic load (GI × carbs minus fiber ÷ 100) | 30 |
USDA FoodData Central, Sweet potato, cooked, baked in skin, flesh, without salt. Glycemic load uses the median GI below.
Glycemic index tests
| Food as tested | GI | Category | Country |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas), Ganja cultivar, baked with skin on at 347°F (175°C) for 45 min | 82 | high | Jamaica |
| Sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas), Dor cultivar, baked with skin on at 347°F (175°C) for 45 min | 83 | high | Jamaica |
| Sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas), Clarendon cultivar, baked with skin on at 347°F (175°C) for 45 min | 83 | high | Jamaica |
| Sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas), Watson cultivar, baked with skin on at 347°F (175°C) for 45 min | 85 | high | Jamaica |
| Sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas), Yellow Belly cultivar, baked with skin on at 347°F (175°C) for 45 min | 86 | high | Jamaica |
| Sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas), Fire on Land cultivar, baked with skin on at 347°F (175°C) for 45 min | 87 | high | Jamaica |
| Sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas), Ms Mac cultivar, baked with skin on at 347°F (175°C) for 45 min | 87 | high | Jamaica |
| Sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas), Minda cultivar, baked with skin on at 347°F (175°C) for 45 min | 91 | high | Jamaica |
Showing 8 of 11 tests.
Glucose = 100. Categories from the International Tables: low 55 or less, medium 56 to 69, high 70 or more. Only tests that met the ISO 26642:2010 method (Supplemental Table 1).
Compared with similar foods
| Food | Portion | GI | Carbs | Glycemic load |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sweet potato | 1 cup (7.1 oz, 200 g) | 87 | 41.4 g | 30 |
| Carrot | 1/2 cup slices (2.8 oz, 78 g) | 32 | 6.4 g | 1 |
| Pumpkin | 1 cup, mashed (8.6 oz, 245 g) | 66 | 12 g | 6 |
| Potato | 1/2 cup (2.8 oz, 78 g) | 66 | 15.7 g | 9 |
Same food group in the International Tables, each at its usual US portion (USDA).
How much the glycemic index matters
Studies and guidelines do not agree on how much weight to give the glycemic index.
- Level C A year after the World Health Organization set the glycemic index aside, a meta-analysis of cohorts each over a hundred thousand people linked high glycemic index diets to more diabetes, heart disease and death. Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology, 2024
- Level E The World Health Organization examined the glycemic index, found it inconsistent, and refused to build guidance on it. Carbohydrate intake for adults and children: WHO guideline, 2023
- Level C Glycemic index and glycemic load, the other two ways of judging carbohydrate, held up far worse than fiber in the same analysis. Reynolds et al., The Lancet, 2019
What studies found about sweet potato
- Level C In 10 healthy adults eating 10 Jamaican sweet potato cultivars, boiled sweet potato had a glycemic index of 41 to 50, while baked (82 to 94) and roasted (79 to 93) were high. Bahado-Singh PS, et al. J Nutr Metab. 2011
Levels: A is a meta-analysis of trials, B a randomized trial, C an observational study, D lab or animal work, E an expert position. How we grade evidence.
In practice
The way you cook it changes the answer. All 11 baked samples in the International Tables, all tested in Jamaica, scored between 82 and 94. In the study of 10 Jamaican cultivars, the same sweet potatoes boiled scored 41 to 50.
Boiled tests from Australia ran higher: 61 for an orange-fleshed sweet potato and 75 for a white-fleshed one, each boiled for 8 minutes. So boiling lowers the GI in that study, but the variety matters too.
A cup of baked sweet potato has 41.4 g of carbs and 6.6 g of fiber, a glycemic load of about 30. Half a cup cuts that to about 15. The GI tests were done in healthy adults, so your own rise can differ.
Evidence behind this note
- Level C In 10 healthy adults eating 10 Jamaican sweet potato cultivars, boiled sweet potato had a glycemic index of 41 to 50, while baked (82 to 94) and roasted (79 to 93) were high. Bahado-Singh PS, et al. J Nutr Metab. 2011
Written from the agency positions and data on this page, reviewed by the Bioma editorial system. How we verify.
Keep exploring
Sources
- Atkinson FS et al. International tables of glycemic index and glycemic load values 2021: a systematic review. Am J Clin Nutr 2021;114(5):1625-1632, Supplemental Table 1, PMID 34258626, doi:10.1093/ajcn/nqab233 (accessed 2026-10-12)
- USDA FoodData Central, SR Legacy (2018): Sweet potato, cooked, baked in skin, flesh, without salt, FDC ID 168483
- USDA FoodData Central, SR Legacy (2018): Carrots, cooked, boiled, drained, without salt, FDC ID 170394
- USDA FoodData Central, SR Legacy (2018): Pumpkin, cooked, boiled, drained, without salt, FDC ID 168449
- USDA FoodData Central, SR Legacy (2018): Potatoes, boiled, cooked in skin, flesh, without salt, FDC ID 170438
- Evidence cards: each study above links to its source. Card review dates are listed in our methodology.
Sources checked 2026-10-12. Bioma Learn provides information, not medical advice.