Popcorn and Low-Carb Diets

can you eat popcorn on a low carb diet

Is it possible to include popcorn in the diet if you use a low-carb diet? Are there any restrictions and recommendations of nutritionists on this topic?

When you’re following a low-carb diet plan, you know you need to keep close tabs on each gram of carb you consume. Popcorn is high in carbohydrates – in truth, the majority of the calories come from carbs – however it can still suit your diet program. You’ll simply need to measure out your portion carefully.

What You Should Know about Carbohydrates

Typically, between 45 and 65 percent of your calories should originate from carbohydrates, which have 4 calories in each gram. So if you tend to follow a 2,000-calorie diet, for example, you’ll require 225 to 325 grams of carbohydrates daily. But your carb-restrictive diet isn’t going to permit you to have that much. Rather, you’ll have to cut your carbohydrate consumption down to 50 to 150 grams a day and in some cases even less, depending on the specifics of your plan.

Popcorn Carb Content

One cup of popcorn, which weighs 8 grams, has roughly 30 total calories. Almost 25 of those calories originate from the 6 grams of carbs. If you’re restricted to 50 grams of carbohydrates a day, that 1 cup of popcorn takes up around 13 percent of your overall carbohydrate allowance. However if you can have closer to 150 grams of carbohydrates each day, a single cup of popcorn accounts for less than 5 percent of your allocation.

Popular Low-Carb Diets List

When we talk about the low-carb diet, we mean one of the most common diets to lose weight and/or restore the health of the body. Here is a list of the most popular diets, the basis of which is the consumption of low amounts of carbohydrates:

  1. Ketogenic Diet
  2. A Typical Low-Carb Diet
  3. Low-Carb, High-Fat (LCHF)
  4. Low-Carb Paleo Diet
  5. The Atkins Diet
  6. Eco-Atkins
  7. Zero-Carb
  8. Low-Carb Mediterranean Diet

How Much Fiber Is in Popcorn?

When checking out a list of high-fiber foods, you’ll typically find popcorn. A 3-cup serving of air-popped popcorn has about 100 calories and 4 grams of fiber. For context, women require about 25 grams of fiber a day and men require 38 grams. That implies one serving of popcorn satisfies 10 to 15 percent of your day-to-day fiber needs. The majority of Americans have a bumpy ride getting sufficient fiber in their diet, but snacking on 3 or more cups of popcorn can help you get more roughage.

Low-Carb Diet and Consuming Popcorn: When Is Enough Carbs for You?

Due to the fact that popcorn is currently quite high in carbohydrates, you definitely don’t want to add anything to it to more boost the carbohydrate content. Dig through your spice cupboard and use dried herbs and spices to season your treat. These flavorings just have a trace quantity of carbohydrates, if any at all.

You can use a couple of sprays of nonstick cooking spray on your popcorn, in place of butter or oil, to get the garnishes to stick, without including a lot of carbs, fat or calories.

Avoid utilizing salt on popcorn. Despite the fact that salt does not have any carbs, it is full of sodium. A couple of dashes, totaling one-fourth of a teaspoon, pack in 600 milligrams of sodium, the American Heart Association states. Because you can only have a maximum of 2,300 milligrams a day, those few shakes of salt take up one-quarter of your daily allowance.

Reyus Mammadli

As a healthy lifestyle blogger for over 10 years, I couldn't pass up healthy eating and diet reviews. I prefer to write small, understandable articles and guides for visitors, to answer the question clearly and concisely and to give the reader a starting point for further actions to improve their diet and health in general.

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