It has the following nutritional benefits:. Air-popped popcorn with no oil provides the best health benefits. People can air-pop popcorn by heating popcorn kernels in a popcorn maker or on a stovetop. Many people will be more used to eating popcorn at the cinema with toppings or flavorings. These added extras tend to have little nutritional value. Microwave popcorn may also contain additives, and the bags can have contaminants.
Premade popcorn often contains a high level of salt, or sodium. Eating too much sodium can cause high blood pressure and lead to other health complications. Some brands also include a lot of sugar.
Added butter, sugar, and salt can make popcorn an unhealthful snack. The health benefits discussed in this article refer to air-popped, oil-free popcorn specifically. Below, we discuss the beneficial nutrition qualities that popcorn, prepared the right way, can provide.
Popcorn is a whole grain, which refers to a group of seeds that come from crops that include barley, millet, oats, rice, and wheat. Unlike refined grains that manufacturers have processed to remove the bran and germ, whole grains include the entire grain seed, also called the kernel.
This means that whole grains contain dietary fiber, protein, vitamins, minerals, and beneficial fats. As a whole grain, popcorn is high in fiber, which is good for digestive health and promoting regular bowel movements.
The recommended daily intake for the average person in the U. Learn more about daily fiber recommendations here. Popcorn also contains protein, with a typical serving containing just over 3 g of the 50 g daily value. The body needs protein for many processes, from blood clotting and fluid balance to immune response and vision. Every cell in the body contains protein, and it has an important role in building and repairing cells and body tissues.
Unsalted, air-popped popcorn contains many vitamins and minerals, including calcium , potassium , vitamin A, and vitamin K.
According to the USDA, the nutritional values of air-popped, unsalted popcorn, in grams g , milligrams mg , and micrograms mcg , are as follows :. Air-popped, unflavored popcorn is low in calories, fat, and sugar, and high in fiber. This means that when someone eats it as part of a balanced diet, popcorn can help them lose weight.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention CDC , the best way for most people to lose weight is by making healthful lifestyle changes. These include healthful eating habits, regular physical activity, and balancing the number of calories consumed with those that the body burns.
Fruits, vegetables, and whole grains, are an essential part of a healthful diet. Foods that are low in saturated fat, trans fats, cholesterol, and added sugars, are also good choices. However, added butter, sugar, and salt can make popcorn an unhealthful snack. Eating foods high in sugars and fats can lead to weight gain. The CDC recommend that people limit their salt intake. You are now leaving the popcorn. All About Popcorn. Our Story.
Our Recipes. Ask Poppy. Power Pops. Media Resources. For example, according to the USDA , a gram bag of low-fat microwave popcorn has calories per bag and 9. However, grams of butter-flavored microwave popcorn made with palm oil has calories and 30 grams of fat, but just 10 grams of fiber. The same flavor of popcorn made with partially hydrogenated oil, a dangerous trans fat, has calories, 34 grams of fat and 10 grams of fiber. If you're a big fan of popcorn as a snack, your best bet is air-popped popcorn, rather than the microwave variety.
An equivalent amount, or grams, of air-popped popcorn has calories, 4 grams of fat and To keep the calories in check, stick to eating just one or two cups of this popcorn — each cup has just 31 calories and less than a half a gram of fat. Read more: How Healthy is Popcorn? The calories in popcorn aren't the main concern with the snack. In , the U. Food and Drug Administration released a final determination that partially hydrogenated oils, a type of trans fat , are not generally recognized as safe.
Trans fats are typically used to prolong the shelf life of food, but can also be used to flavor microwave popcorn — to the detriment of your health, according to the Mayo Clinic. Trans fats raise your LDL cholesterol, which is the unhealthy type of cholesterol, and decrease the good cholesterol, HDL. Butter-flavored popcorn made with palm oil does not contain trans fats, but it shouldn't necessarily be considered healthy. Palm oil contains a significant amount of saturated fat, which should comprise less than 10 percent of your total daily calories, due to its effect on cholesterol, the Mayo Clinic notes.
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