The greatest movie theatre debate must be sweet or salted popcorn.
Due to the indulgent flavours involved, popcorn can often be overlooked as an office snack hack.
A savoury snack often flavoured with a sweet or salted coating; popcorn is a movie-time staple. Popular flavours include sweet, butter, toffee and salted.
Assumed to be highly calorific and processed food, wholegrain popcorn can be a healthy office snack.
Let us pop the miscorncepetion
Popcorn and calories
Popcorn from the movies can contain almost 2000 calories per portion. Homemade or healthy alternatives however can have a much lower calorie count.
Per cup, air-popped popcorn contains only thirty calories. Oil popped has a slightly higher calorie content of 35 calories. A typical serving is around 3-4 cups, approximately 120-140 calories.
The high increase in calories comes from the flavouring used.
A serving of buttered popcorn increases to around five hundred calories. This is the same for sweet or caramel options. Around four times the calorie content of unflavoured popcorn.
Salted popcorn contains slightly fewer calories than its sweet alternatives with around four hundred calories a serving. Elevated levels of salt intake are also attributed to an increased risk of heart conditions. The daily recommended sodium intake is 2.4g or around 6g of table salt.
Healthy variations of popcorn are available alongside homemade. Propercorn contains eighty-eight calories per portion and makes for a great desk snack hack.
Fibre content
Fibre plays a key role in our health. The type of fibre within popcorn is insoluble, this is the bulking fibre that aids digestion and bowel health.
Fibre can also contribute to a healthy heart and reduce the risks of haemorrhoids and certain cancers.
The RDA for fibre is around 25g for women and 38g for men.
A typical serving of popcorn can contain around 4g of fibre or approximately 15% of your daily intake.
Always remember, a balanced diet is key. We should avoid any food in excess, popcorn included! Popcorn is a low-density, high-fibre snack. A typical serving is around 100g which can leave us sometimes feeling like we need a little more.
Always remain vigilant with your food intake and do not overindulge in sweet treats!