December 7th, 2009 by Toni Brayer, M.D. in Better Health Network, Health Tips
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After a holiday weekend of movie-going and eating that popcorn that smells so good in the theater, it was a shock to read the report from the Center for Science in the Public Interest that shows just how bad theater popcorn is. The researchers studied medium size popcorn from three large movie chains; Regal Entertainment Group, AMC and Cinemark.
The analysis showed that a Regal medium popcorn contains 1,200 calories and 60 grams of saturated fat. AMC popcorn was a “smaller” medium and contained 590 calories and 33 grams of saturated fat. This was before adding the butter topping. Cinemark wasn’t much better at 760 calories but it only had 3 grams of saturated fat.
Kudos to Cinemark for popping their corn in canola oil with less saturated fat. The other chains use heart unhealthy coconut oil, which is about 90% saturated fat. Lard is 40% saturated!
The study showed that a $12 medium popcorn and soda combination at a Regal movie would be the equivalent of three McDonald’s Quarter Pounders with 12 pats of butter. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at EverythingHealth*
May 25th, 2009 by admin in Better Health Network
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I am always on the lookout for a new snack and I found one I just had to tell you about. I have a big sweet tooth so sweet snacks are usually my first choice (although I also do love my popchips). I firmly believe in the glycemic index for snacks and try to choose things with fiber and/or protein so that they give me sustained energy instead of a spike and drop in my energy. I hate it when I eat something only to be hungry or feel lethargic 30 minutes later.
The new favorite sweet snack is SmartFood popcorn clusters. Mmmmm. You may remember or still have on your store shelves the SmartFood popcorn that is cheddar flavor, but this is completely different. These are sweet and in individual bags.
The SmartFood clusters are sweet, sweet, sweet. They hit the spot a few minutes ago when I ate a pack. I had the Cranberry Almond flavor and it is tart along with the sweet for a nice combo. They also come in Honey Multigrain which taste JUST like caramel corn and a Chocolate Cookie Caramel Pecan Flavor which is a bit more rich than the others.
The reason I love them is that they are also nutritious (of course!). They have 5 grams of fiber (which makes them lower glycemic) and are an excellent source (20%) of calcium. They are made with brown rice syrup instead of high fructose corn syrup and are low in fat with no saturated or trans fat. Each pack is 110-120 calories and are quite convenient to throw into your purse or briefcase or desk drawer.
Check them out and let me know what you think. I found them in the chip aisle in my grocery store.
This post, Yummy New Snack, was originally published on
Healthine.com by Brian Westphal.