Popcorn is a popular treat among children and adults today. True, you can’t call it dietary exactly. Especially if the snack is cooked with a lot of fat. How many calories in popcorn with different additives are described below.
Material Content:
The chemical composition and nutritional value of popcorn
As you know, popcorn is made from corn kernels. If we talk about its nutritional value without taking into account the oils in which the snack is prepared, then for 100 g of the product you will get 4.5 g of fat, almost 64 g of carbohydrates and about 13 g of protein. These figures are relevant for popcorn cooked in hot air. By the way, this method is the most harmless, because in the process the grains are not fried in large quantities of oil and the snack lover does not receive a huge dose of cholesterol and carcinogens when using such a treat.
There are also dietary fiber in the product - a little less than 15 g per 100 g of refreshments. Water also enters into it - about 3.3 g.
How many calories in snacks
The exact calorie content of popcorn depends on so many parameters. Not only from how it is prepared, but also from a variety of additives. Popcorn is extremely rarely consumed in its pure form. Usually it is served with salt, sugar, or even with more high-calorie additives - cheese, caramel and other similar ones.
If there is nothing "superfluous" in popcorn, and it was processed with hot air, and not fried in fat, then its calorific value will be 387 kcal per 100 g. As you can see, this a rather high rate even without butter, cheese, sugar and other additives.
In salt
Especially popular among crispy snack lovers is salty popcorn. It is it that is most often sold in cinemas, amusement parks, and simply in supermarkets.Usually a ready-made snack is salted. In order to better absorb the additive, salt is added to the popcorn while it is still very hot.
The caloric content of this type of snack is approximately 406 kcal per 100 g of product. A portion of refreshments per person often weighs 200-300 g. And it is eaten in just one movie session.
In the sweet
Sweet popcorn is usually the second most popular foodie. At its preparation granulated sugar is added. On the surface of bloated corn, sweet grains melt and solidify in the form of a crispy caramel crust.
Understanding how many calories are in sweet popcorn, you need to consider the amount of sugar in a serving. But on average, this figure is about 427 kcal per 100 grams.
With various additives
The most high-calorie and harmful for the figure is popcorn with various additional additives in addition to salt and sugar. So, this indicator for cheese snacks exceeds 500 kcal per 100 g. After all, this option is most often also fried in hot vegetable oil.
Do not confuse sweet caramel popcorn. To prepare the last caramel is boiled separately with the addition of milk and / or butter. Depending on the recipe for a sweet supplement, the calorie content of a snack can reach 530 kcal per 100 g of product. Of course, such a treat with caramel taste is definitely worth giving up in the process of losing weight. Otherwise, the "gain" of extra pounds in problem areas cannot be avoided.
The benefits and harms of the product
It should be noted that talk about the benefits of popcorn is possible only if it is not fried in oil and is used in small quantities, for example, 30-50 g. In general, the properties of crushed and turned inside out corn grains are not much different from fresh or boiled corn. So, this product:
- Helps cleanse the intestines. Toxins are derived from this important organ. It is also cleansed of accumulated carcinogens and harmful chemicals.
- It contains a large amount of fiber. Do not forget about vitamins B. The product enriches our body with all these essential substances.
- With proper preparation and use, it is able to accelerate metabolic processes. This is important in normalizing weight. Of course, portions of popcorn during the diet should be minimal.
- Contains polyphenols, powerful antioxidants. Their use is the prevention of serious ailments of the heart and blood vessels, as well as cancerous tumors.
We should also talk about the dangers of such a snack. So, people with a stomach ulcer and diabetes will have to completely exclude the product from their menu. They should not eat delicacy even in minimal portions.
Salty popcorn traps fluid in the human body. It is capable of causing swelling. And sweet can quickly become the cause of excess weight and even obesity.
So that popcorn does not harm the body, you should independently prepare it from dried corn kernels. Products sold on supermarket shelves often contain a lot of dangerous fats and all kinds of harmful additives.
