Popcorn is a light and healthy snack having a good nutritional value. Popcorns provide roughage and are thus helpful in digestion. These are prepared in different ways and their calorie content varies depending upon the way they are cooked. You may have air-popped popcorn which is popped with the help of hot air and is comparatively low in calories; one cup of these popcorns has 31 calories. The fat content is also low in this kind of popcorn. Then there are oil-popped popcorns that are popped using oil. They may even be popped in butter which increases their calorie content. Each serving of this popcorn has 64 calories. These are even topped with extra butter which raises the calorie content further.
Microwaved popcorns are also quite popular as these are fat free though the calorie content in these is quite high. One oz of microwaved popcorns has 116 calories. Caramel coated popcorns which are a hot favourite amongst the kids have 113 calories in 2/3 cup and cheese flavoured popcorn have 58 calories in one cup
While 1 cup of air-popped plain popcorns also has 0.34 grams of fats, 6.23 grams of carbohydrates, 26.32 mg potassium and 1.21 grams of dietary fibre the oil-popped popcorns have 4.79 grams fats, 4.96 grams carbohydrates, 20.2 mg potassium and 0.9 grams of dietary fibre. Microwaved popcorns on the other hand contain 2.11 grams of fats, 21.28 grams of fibre and 88.17 mg potassium.
It is also interesting to know that popcorns have a greater amount of iron content than eggs and roast beef. Spinach, which is considered to be a rich source of iron also does not contain as much iron as does the popcorn. Popcorn also has a good amount of protein content, even greater than the cereals. Popcorns also have vitamins and minerals which makes them a healthy food option.
