Your Vitamin News:
Vitamin K offers us big health benefits that are hard to ignore.
More likely than not, you have not heard much about vitamin K. In fact, you may not have heard of it at all. It certainly doesn't have the high profile of other vitamins. But as more research has been devoted to this nutrient, vitamin K has become a rising start over the last 5 Years.
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Snack News!
The “Skinny” on Popcorn!
Although popcorn has become inexorably linked with fun and entertainment, it’s not necessarily as innocent and wholesome as it seems. Depending on how it’s prepared, popcorn can be range from G to R rated and even dangerously unhealthy.

Read on before your next movie night…

Popcorn is a party for the taste buds. And, in its pure form, it’s healthful. Free of salt, trans-fatty acids and preservatives, in its natural state, popcorn provides a delicious source of fiber. This whole-grain product is also lower in calories than most other snack foods.

The doctors at the Center for Holistic Medicine encourage patients to include plenty of fiber in their diets. Why? Because a high-fiber diet has many positive effects on physical health. “In addition to positive effects in the gastrointestinal tract in [fiber] has an obvious potential to support weight reduction and to improve disturbances of carbohydrate and fat metabolism,” according to a published article by German researchers. Eating a high-fiber diet is also considered to be especially effective in the prevention of type 2 diabetes (Horm Metab Res 2007;39:687-93).

But…popcorn is rarely served unadulterated. Rather, what manufacturers and consumers add to it transforms this otherwise healthy treat into an unhealthy nightmare.

Unhealthy Fats Lurking in Your Kernels

Popcorn troubles start with the toppings. And, believe it or not, butter is not the worst offender.

Although real butter is high in fat, this type of fat is actually healthier than the phony “butter flavor” used in many microwave and movie house popcorns. “Butter flavor” is often high in trans-fatty acids (TFA), which are associated with a bolstered risk of cardiovascular disease, cancer and a plethora of other ailments. Even if your favorite movie house or popcorn brand boasts “no trans fats” – beware. The primary fat used to replace trans fat (fully hydrogenated or interesterfied fat) is just as destructive to health, if not more so.

And beware- even a little microwave popcorn equals a lot of trans fat. Nutrition experts define a snack of just 100 grams (3.5 ounces) of standard microwave popcorn as a high trans-fat menu item. This is equivalent in transfat content to a meal of french fries and chicken nuggets (Atheroscler Suppl 2006;7:47-52).

Additional Inhalation Risk

Inhaling fumes from chemicals in microwave popcorn’s butter flavoring also poses a health risk.

A published study in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine confirms numerous earlier reports: Workers in microwave popcorn plants are at high risk of developing bronchial obstruction. The culprit? Continued exposure to chemical components found in butter flavorings (Am J Respir Crit Care Med 2009;176:498-504).

Known as “popcorn worker’s lung,” the effects are compounded over time (Toxicol Appl Pharmacol 2006;215:17-22).

For those who make microwave popcorn part of their nightly ritual, continued inhalation of the rich, buttery “just popped” fragrance from the bag can also damage lungs.

Packaging and Portion Size

Popcorn also poses a threat to your waistline due to the way it is packages and how we typically eat it- in a jumbo container while distracted by a movie or ballgame. One unique study included 158 movie-goers in Philadelphia (57.6 percent male with an average age of 28.7 years). Researchers randomly gave participants a medium (120 gram) or large (240 gram) container of free popcorn that was either fresh or stale (14 days old).

Following the move, consumption measures were taken, along with measures of perceived taste. “Moviegoers who were given frosh popcorn ate 45.3 percent more popcorn when it was given tot hem in large containers. This container-size influence is so powerful that even when the popcorn was disliked, people still ate 33.6 percent more popcorn when eating from a large container verse a medium0sized one.” (J Nutr Educ Behav 2005;37:242-5.)

Irritable Bowel Syndrome

For some, popcorn can also be hard on the digestive system.

Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is sparked by hypersensitivity to foods and beverages that stimulate the gastrointestinal tract. These often include popcorn, dairy products, caffeine, alcoholic beverages, spices, diet beverages and nuts (Inflamm Bowel Dis 2007;13:91-6).

If you experience any allergic reactions of change in bowel consistency after consuming popcorn consult with your doctor.

Popping the Old Fashioned Way Is Best

Using a hot-air popper to inflate kernels eliminates the need for oil of fat, and increases the health benefits of popcorn.

Other home-cooked methods, such as popping with a small amount of olive oil in a tightly covered pan on the stovetop, also offer benefits because you, not the manufacturer, control the amount and type of butter and salt used.

Talk with Karen Russell our Certified Health Coach and Nutritionalist on healthful ways to prepare this and other tasty movie treats.