I was once at a PR dinner where someone told me that corn is the worst thing that you could possibly eat. They told me this as I was slicing thickly buttered corn off of a cob to presumably put into my mouth and enjoy.
Corn is delicious, so I knew they couldn’t possibly be talking about the taste. They had to be talking about how nutritious it is–or the lack there of. This thought has honestly plagued me since they said it so I thought I would do my own investigating.
When you type “is corn” into Google, the first few things that pop up are:
-Is corn keto?
-Is corn healthy?
-Is corn a grain?
-Is corn gluten-free?
So clearly, people are having issues figuring out if corn will fit in to their keto and gluten-free diets as well as whether or not corn is a grain and if corn is overall a healthy thing to eat. Before now, I probably would have googled “is corn okay to eat after X many days” because I like to live dangerously and eat old leftovers sometimes when I find them in my fridge.
I am not an expert or a nutritionist or a doctor or on a diet. I am just a woman with a healthy curiosity about corn. So I did some investigating.
According to a report from Harvard, although corn is a vegetable it is the worst vegetable for you. 😡
The study found that starchy foods like corn and potatoes and peas have higher glycemic loads that make your blood sugar spike and will make you want to eat more of that item therefore causing you to gain weight. OH!
Since weight gain is not a bad thing, just a thing that happens if you are a person who eats and grows and ages, I had yet to be convinced. I wanted to find hard evidence that CORN IS BAD BECAUSE IT DOES XYZ TO YOUR BODY. You know, like internal bleeding from eating hot Cheetos. I kept digging.
Healthline brings up the fact that corn is frequently genetically modified, but that GMOs in relation to human health are a hotly debated topic. Some research shows that consuming GMOs can have a “toxic effect” on your organs. But apparently other research says there is practically no difference between the vegetable you grow in your backyard and the ones grown by Monsanto.
As someone who dated a person with raw vegan parents that owned a raw vegan restaurant and told fresh baby 18-year-old me that Monsanto is evil–something I have conducted further research on in my 20s and while I may not say that they are evil, they are incredibly sinister– I am more than likely to side with the fact that GMOS=bad.
HOWEVER
Healthline also lists a bunch of benefits about corn. Aside from it being tasty it benefits eye health, it’s packed with fiber, vitamins, minerals and it might even ward off colon disease.
This Healthline article was in DIRECT opposition of a thing I found on a weird paleo blog. This paleo blog says that it can actually harm your gut health severely. It also brings up GMOs. According to Paleo Flourish, corn is NOT paleo.
OKAY BUT THEN THIS RANDOM GUY, Dr. Axe, says that corn is high in vitamin c, is rich in magnesium and contains certain B-vitamins and potassium. He seems to be more in favor of corn but also brings up GMOs, high fructose corn syrup, and how it’s used in a lot of processed foods.
So is corn bad for you?
From what I can tell (I am NOT a corn expert, just a person who spent an hour online researching this) corn can be bad for you. Just like how people freak the fuck out over the high caloric content of a banana and its natural sugars, people seem to be freaking out about corn.
If it doesn’t fuck up your digestive system–meaning your body CAN digest it (not all bodies can)– it might spike your glucose levels which may cause you to eat more of it. If you’re eating genetically modified corn, it may cause health issues but also, if you’re eating fruits and vegetables from supermarkets in America without doing extensive research– You’re most likely eating genetically modified produce.
Corn does have nutritional benefits.
Gaining weight is a natural and normal.
If you want to explain to me why consuming corn will end my life…..shoot us an email or leave us a comment!
Corn is fine! Bye!
Lately 