Yacon is a tuber like potato, but they differ in that yacon does not have starch and its main components are water, inulin and fructooligosaccharides (FOS).
Yacon is very juicy with a pleasant sweetness that it seems to be eating a watermelon.  It is known since ancient times, explorer Bernabé Cobo in 1633 wrote, --"It is a fruit that lasts several days after harvesting, without fail, on the contrary it becomes more enjoyable."

YACON’S PROPERTIES:

Yacon or jicama or xicama or Mexican turnip is a distant relative of the sunflower and the topinambur.
It is a small tree that is cultivated in the Andean Region of Peru. It is a tuber that doesn't have starch, of crispy texture and sweet flavor. Its root is composed of water and oligofructans.
It is a household cultivation because you can cultivate it easily in any garden whenever the climate is the appropriate one.
The main chemical components of yacon are the inulin and the fructooligosaccharides (FOS); when they are in the digestive tract they release a carbohydrate that is not sugar but fructose. 

This fructose cannot be metabolized by the human digestive system and it goes to the colon where it is fermented by the existing microflora until becoming a prebiotics that are bifidobacterium and lactobacillus that promote the growth of beneficent microorganisms for health, because, when  the fecal volume is increased they make possible the intestinal peristalsis that facilitates the absorption of some mineral elements as  calcium, magnesium and phosphorus.

The Universidad Nacional Agraria (Universidad Agraria La Molina, Perú) made the following conclusions:

- Insulin and FOS prevent and reduce the CONSTIPATION, since the fecal volume increases and therefore the intestinal motility does.

- It inhibits the diarrheas because of its prebiotic effect on pathological bacteria as the grampositive and gramnegative.

- It reduces the risks of Osteoporosis because it makes possible a bigger absorption of calcium.

- It reduces the risks of cardiovascular arterioescleroses by making possible to have a hypocaloric diet.

- It decreases the colon cancer.

A hypoglycemiant effect is recognized in the yacon leaves because of the presence of the sesquiterpenes that are terpenes which contain a natural hormone called "abscisic acid" which is an insulin component, but these studies on the yacon leaves and its effects in glucose reduction in blood are not definitive.

It is very recommended the yacon in the diet for diabetics and in diets of low calories since it is a fiber that regulates the digestion and it doesn't raise blood glucose concentration, becoming yacon in a good sugar substitute.

In yacon’s roots there is a percentage of potassium added to tryptophan and chlorogenic acid that have antioxidant properties, together they benefit hypertensive people besides having an antiaging effect. 

YACON FLOUR
Yacon roots contain huge quantities of potassium and antioxidants.
Yacon root’s dried powder contains (dry base) 50-70% FOS and low proportion of simple sugars (e.g., glucose, fructose and sucrose).

The human body has no enzyme to hydrolyze FOS, so it passes through the area of metabolism and digestion, providing few calories, all of an aid and a commercial phenomenon for those on a diet and diabetics.

It is for these qualities that the yacon and its transformation into syrups,  supplements an natural pills in general, have become generally speaking essential, in the diet of those who know the benefits of this plant, believe it or not, it is  not so widespread worldwide.

Most other roots and tubers store carbohydrates as building blocks of starch (a polymer of glucose),  yacon stores carbohydrate as blocks of fructoligosaccharides (FOS) which is a polymer composed primarily of fructose.

YACON TEA

The Japanese propose that if the leaves are used as tea it would be avoided the highs produced when sugars or starches are eaten, probably by a reduction in blood glucose levels.
There are clear experimental indications that give a physiological basis for such use detected by a group of Brazilian researchers and later confirmed in Argentina.
In these works carried out in lab rats, it was proved that aqueous extract of yacon leaves have the ability to reduce levels of glucose in the blood.
Yacon leaf extracts have the ability to increase blood insulin levels and consequently reduce blood glucose levels.

This reduction is positively expressed, maintaining the filtering capacity of the kidneys, whose failure is evidenced by increase in the elimination of creatinine and albumin.

These results support the popular use of yacon tea.

Yacon Presentation:

1. Yacon capsues: take 1-3 capsules daily with food It is a natural prebiotic that helps maintain optimal intestinal flora .

2. Yacon Syrup: Use as a sweetener in beverages, fruit salad and yoghurt.

3. Yacon Leaf Filter: Pour boiling water into a cup and let stand for 4-6 minutes. Yacon leaves filter helps prevent high levels of glucose, triglycerides, cholesterol, high blood pressure. It is recommended as a good antioxidant.

4. Yacon meal is offered for encapsulating or as a food additive.