ABSTRACT
Tuber root vegetable that is long and cylindrical whose esh, depending on species, can range from off-white to yellow or pink or purple, with skin that is off-white to dark brown.1 Yam differs from the darker orange sweet potato, Ipomoea batatas, which is classied under a different botanical family, and because yams are not dark orange in color, their vitamin A content is much lower than sweet potatoes. Approximately 150 different species of yam are commercially cultivated, and white yam (D. rotundata) is the most predominant yam species produced worldwide.2 In traditional folk medicine, yams have been used to treat menopausal symptoms. Yam contains natural steroid precursors but does not have oral contraceptive properties, contrary to popular belief that the phytochemical diosgenin found in wild yam is used to manufacture human steroidal hormones, such as dehydroepiandrosterone, though “taking wild yam extract will not increase dehydroepiandrosterone levels in humans.”3 Yams are baked, boiled, or fried. They are a good source of ber and an excellent source of vitamin C, folate, and potassium.4
