While corn is a popular food and appears to fit well into most diet plans, there are some things you have to consider about it.

It’s hard to imagine watching a good movie without some buttered pop corn or a great barbeque without corn on the cob, but it may be time to rethink these popular choices.

What a lot of people want to know is…

Does corn help or hurt diet plans?

Unfortunately, as much as 60% of corn in the United States is genetically modified. In fact, the numbers may be higher because it is hard to get solid statistics on such a controversial topic. This practice of genetic modification of corn began as a way to allow farmers to grow a bigger crop and make more money because the crops could now fight off insects that were resistant to insecticides.

Sweet corn has also been genetically modified (now called Bt-corn) so that it produces a poison which kills harmful insects. This means the farmer no longer needs to fight insects with insecticides.

There is not enough evidence to show that this new type of corn is safe to consume. While farmers may make more money, it raises the question about the real value of corn.

Since the long term effects of GMO (genetically modified organism) foods are not known, we are all part of a massive experiments, unwitting guinea pigs. In fact, what little research that has been done on GMO has resulted in some disturbing news. In April 2007, Arpad Pusztai, a researcher from Rowett Research Institute in Aberdeen, UK, noted that rats fed on genetically engineered potatoes had intestinal problems.

Doctors frequently deal with patients who have irritable bowel syndrome and other digestive problems. GMO foods may be playing a significant role in this issue.

Ok, so what if you’re able to get non-GMO corn? (Which it is difficult to know which brands and items are GMO and which are not) where does corn fit into diet plans?

Weight Loss And Carbohydrates

It is more accurate to classify corn as a grain rather than a vegetable, because the body “reads” corn as a carbohydrate. So a meal of corn with brown rice will actually be a meal with two carbohydrate servings. While this is not necessarily a bad thing, you should not consume an overabundance of carbohydrates if you are not an active athlete and plan to lose weight.

How does microwave popcorn help or hinder a healthy diet?

Microwave popcorn is not healthy. There are two reasons for this. It has preservatives and the bag is coated with chemicals used in non-stick cookware that rubs on the kernels.

What about air popped popcorn?

This is the best choice, but it should only be eaten occasionally. Since pop corn is a grain, it is a carbohydrate, and having too many carbohydrates will not assist in weight loss.

In conclusion, then, it’s fine to include corn into your diet plans provided you take some precautions. Firstly, only get the non-GMO variety. Secondly, consider corn a grain rather than a vegetable and allocate it to the carbohydrate portion of your meals.

Saleem Rana recommends you learn more about diet from the free information offered by renowned nutritionist Isabela De Los Rios