Does Popcorn Have Carbs? Is It safe for Diabetics?

Do you love popcorn but are diabetic? Well, if the answer to this question is a yes, then you should not worry as doctors and experts have given their nod to eating popcorns and including them as part of your overall meal plan. Although high in carbohydrates, popcorns are known to be a storehouse of vitamins and nutrients which make them highly beneficial for your health. Find out more in the article that follows:

Carbohydrates in Popcorns:

Popcorn does contain carbohydrates. Air popped popcorn comprise around 78% of the carbohydrates. One whole cup of the popcorn contains around 6.23 grams of carbohydrates. One cup or one serving of popcorn will not do any harm to your body because some amount of carbohydrate is essential to the normal functioning of the body. It is required to create energy. Thus, eating the recommended quantity of this snack will not cause any harm to you even if you are someone who suffers from diabetes.

Can Diabetics Eat Popcorn?

According to the American Diabetes Association, popcorn is healthy for a diabetic person. The reason being the following:

• Popcorns are rich in fiber. By slowing the process of gastric emptying, popcorns can help a great deal in stabilizing the elevated levels of blood glucose.

• Also, the snack helps you feel full for a longer period of time. You can include it in your diet if you are looking forward to managing weight and shedding all those extra calories.

• Popcorn is a rich source of vitamins and minerals, namely beta-carotene, lutein, vitamin A, vitamin E, riboflavin, vitamin B6, amongst others and these nutrients go a long way in helping to deal with diabetes and its complications.

• The snack has antioxidants and several anti-inflammatory properties which will help a diabetes patient

• There is almost zero cholesterol present in our favorite snack. Hence, when you are diabetic and love popcorn, you can easily eat it because there will be hardly any fear of getting heart-related problems.

• Recommended daily intake of whole grain can be fulfilled by popcorn to an extent of around 70%

Thus, it is safe to say that you can certainly eat popcorn if you are a diabetic. However, you do need to follow the below-mentioned guidelines while you include the snack in your diet.

Guidelines for Including Popcorn in a Diabetic Diet:
Following are the guidelines which you should follow if you love popcorn and you are diabetic:

• As per the American Diabetes Association, the total recommended carbohydrate intake for a diabetes patient is somewhere around 45 to 60 grams per meal. So, as long as you take that into your account, you can adequately have popcorn even if you have diabetes.

• When we talk about eating popcorn, we are generally speaking of the air-poppedpopcorn, not the ones which you get in movie halls and is mixed with butter and salt. You should avoid eating the movie popcorn that is loaded with butter and is harmful to your body.

• You can add garlic powder or even thyme to give the much-needed flavor to your popcorn

• While buying popcorn from the market, you should ideally choose the loose kernels rather than going for the kettle corn variety.

• Finally, you should also avoid popcorns which are flavored and covered with either candy or caramel.

We hope that the above article has been helpful in removing some of the doubts you must have had about the inclusion of popcorn in a diabetic diet. As long as you have the snack under the supervision of your doctor, and also follow the above-mentioned guidelines, it is safe to eat the popcorn!!