Sonic blasts can make potatoes healthier

Ultrasound or electricity can make potatoes healthier, research has shown.

The stress of being sonically blasted or shocked causes them to generate more antioxidants, which have been shown to combat heart disease and cancer.

Researchers believe the techniques could be used to turn the humble spud into one of nature's "superfoods".

Potatoes, the world's fifth most widely consumed plant food, are already a good source of antioxidants, including vitamin C and compounds called "polyphenols".

Scientists built a laboratory "torture chamber" where they could subject potatoes to high frequency ultrasonic soundwaves or mild electric shocks.

The treatment almost doubled the levels of some antioxidants in the potatoes.

The findings of the study, led by Dr Kazunori Hironaka, from Obihiro University in Japan, will be presented today at the 240th national meeting of the American Chemical Society in Boston, Massachusetts, US.