Believe it or not, eating popcorn is the healthiest habit and the snack is being enjoyed by civilizations for over 6000 years now, claims a study from PNAS (Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America).
From fighting cancer to giving us more antioxidants than fruits and vegetables, popcorn can play a pivotal role and should be a part of our everyday diet according to Reader’s Digest.
Here are 9 reasons why you should munch on air-popped corns, every day.
1. You can eat calorie free popcorn if you pop it the right way.
As mentioned earlier, not all popcorn types are safe for your health. The ones with extra fat and calories can be harmful for everyday consumption and can make you obese. To prevent that, pop it the right way keeping only a part of the calorie count.
2. Popcorn could be healthier than fruits and vegetables.
In this age where adulterated food items and vegetables are in excess, popcorn may just be a healthier option available. According to the University of Scranton, popcorn comes loaded with polyphenols, compounds found in plants that act as antioxidants and can reduce inflammation.
3. Popcorn may prevent and fight cancer.
Yes, you read that right. Popcorn as we know provides our body with a comfortable dose of polyphenols. The same block enzymes, which cancer cells need to grow. Thus eating popcorn is a healthy alternative that can also prevent inflammation & plaque buildup.
4. Popcorn may help relieve constipation.
Whole grain snacks have a lot of benefits over snacks that are fried or made with too much oil. The ability to relieve constipation comes from insoluble fibers, which help in keeping our digestive system in check.
5. Popcorn gives you your fill of whole grain.
We talked about popcorn being a whole grain snack but did we tell you that it is the only snack that’s 100% unprocessed whole grain. Better than pulses (only 60-75% whole grain) and easily consumed by the body, having popcorn every day is a win-win situation for your health.
6. Popcorn can keep your diabetes in check.
Though you’ll always find fiber listed under total carbohydrates, popcorn simply won’t make a difference for people who are diabetic. Why? Because refined carbs don’t have the same effect on blood sugar before or after digestion.
7. A Healthy snack for those dieting or trying to lose weight.
People are afraid of eating something out of the box simply because they believe that’ll make them fat or ruin their workout regime. Not popcorn though.
8. Popcorn has more iron than spinach.
Yes, spinach may be Popeye’s ultimate secret but popcorn has an edge when it comes to the amount of iron present in it. According to USDA, one ounce of popcorn contains 0.9 mg of iron, whereas, one cup of raw spinach has 0.8 mg of iron.
9. Never a boring snack, comes with a variety of topping options.
Of course, goes without saying, you don’t have to eat the same type everyday. You can look for tastier alternatives like caramel popcorn, yeast popcorn, brown butter & crispy sage popcorn, buffalo popcorn, matcha popcorn, etc.
Now that you’ve got 9 different reasons, enjoy munching your favorite popcorn type with your loved ones without worrying about the side effects.