Interesting info, CORN, Should we eat it?????
nataliefallbach
Posts: 105
Is Corn Healthy or making you sick and overweight?
by Mike Geary, Certified Nutrition Specialist
Contrary to popular belief, corn is a grain, not a vegetable, and is really not appropriate as a dietary staple for several reasons:
1. The problems with "antinutrients" in corn (and other grains too)
2. The inflammatory aspect of excess omega-6 fats in corn products
3. The blood sugar disrupting nature of corn products.
When civilizations such as the Mayans and Native Americans changed their diet to a corn-based one, rates of anemia, arthritis, rickets, and osteoporosis skyrocketed.
Our bodies were not made to exist on such a high quantity of grain-based foods as is present in the modern western diet. This evidence shows up in the archeological records of our ancestors. When archaeologists looked at skeletons of native Americans in burial mounds in the Midwest who ate corn as their primary staple, there was a 50% increase in malnutrition, four times as much incidence of iron-deficiency, and three times as much infectious disease, compared to the more hunter-gather ancestors who primarily ate meats and fruits and veggies as opposed to grains.
Keep in mind that we are not just talking about corn-on-the-cob (sweet corn) here... we are also talking about corn cereals, corn chips, and other modern corn-based foods that are promoted by food companies as "healthy." There are several reasons researchers give for the nutritional problems and the weight gain caused by a corn-dominated diet:
• Corn contains lots of fast digesting starches and sugar, which raises insulin levels, causes you to be hungrier and causes your body to store calories as fat. Don’t be mistaken, just because corn does not taste obviously sweet, doesn’t mean it isn’t full of sugars. Once eaten, your body quickly turns corn based foods into sugar. Even the starches in corn products can be broken down very quickly by your body spiking your blood sugar levels, and causing cravings for more carbohydrate-based foods.
• Corn is also a poor source of protein, usually deficient in 3 of the 8 essential amino acids: lysine, isoleucine, and tryptophan. The essential amino acids are so-named because they must be obtained from the diet, since the body is unable to manufacture them.
• Corn contains a high amount of phytate, a chemical that binds to iron and inhibits its absorption by the body. So, consequently, a diet high in phytate can make people more likely to have iron-deficiency anemia and fatigue. Phytate is also a nutrient blocker (an antinutrient) and inhibits other vitamins and minerals from being utilized.
• Corn is a poor source of certain minerals such as calcium and some vitamins such as niacin (B3). Deficiencies of niacin can result in a condition known as Pellagra, which is common in civilizations that eat a lot of corn. It can cause a variety of symptoms such as dermatitis, diarrhea, and depression. Since we are now a nation of corn-eaters, it wouldn’t be surprising that this is more common here than we realize.
• Corn oils are also used in most processed foods (along with soybean oils). Both corn oil and soybean oil are excessively high in inflammatory omega-6 fats and low in anti-inflammatory omega-3 fats. This throws the delicate balance of omega-6 to omega-3 in your body out of whack and can cause degenerative diseases and weight gain over time. In addition, corn oil and soybean oil are highly refined with high heat and solvents, which oxidizes and damages the fragile polyunsaturated oils, and makes them even more inflammatory when you ingest them in processed foods.
It's not just people who eat too much corn based foods. A large amount of the nation's corn crop ends up feeding commercially raised cattle, which are cheaply fattened on corn and other grains before slaughter. Beef from corn-fattened cattle also has much higher ratios of inflammatory omega-6 fatty acids than healthier grass fed beef which contains more anti-inflammatory omega-3 fatty acids. Most meat in supermarkets comes from grain-fed animals and not healthy grass fed animals.
Because corn and other grains are an unnatural diet and difficult to digest, cattle raised on corn develop higher stomach acidity, which is a breeding ground for the dangerous E. coli O157:H7, the deadly strain of the bacteria. E-coli is rare in healthy grass-fed meat.
While eliminating refined grains such as corn and wheat (yes, it seems they are in everything!) can seem a very daunting task, the reward is a return to wonderful health, sparkling eyes, clear skin, clear thinking, and less body fat as the body is once again able to extract appropriate nutrients from food, reduced inflammation caused by grain based foods, and a resolution of nutritional deficiencies from the lack of absorption.
Do yourself a favor, and try at least 2 weeks with no grain products at all. I guarantee you will see some drastic improvements in your weight, energy, and general outlook! This is easier than you may think... For example, instead of having pasta with sauce and meat for dinner, a better alternative would be to have just grass-fed meat, tomato sauce, and veggies, topped with a little parmesan cheese. It’s delicious and no grains!
Another example would be breakfast... instead of cereals, bagels, or muffins, try to base most of your breakfasts on cage-free organic whole eggs with lots of veggies and perhaps some bison sausage or other nitrate/nitrite-free turkey or chicken sausage. If you're very active and need a little more carbs with your breakfast, instead of grains, a small piece of fruit or some tea with a little bit of raw honey can be great additions to the egg/veggies based breakfast. This is a delicious and satisfying breakfast that will control your blood sugar, balance your hormones, and eliminate the problems with antinutrients found in most grains. Those are just a couple examples, but I think you get the point of how easy this can be.
I know it may not be realistic for everybody to give up grains fully, so the most realistic plan for many people is to only eat grain based foods (bread, pasta, cereals, etc) on their one cheat day each week, and save 6 days per week to be grain-free. Your body with thank you!
by Mike Geary, Certified Nutrition Specialist
Contrary to popular belief, corn is a grain, not a vegetable, and is really not appropriate as a dietary staple for several reasons:
1. The problems with "antinutrients" in corn (and other grains too)
2. The inflammatory aspect of excess omega-6 fats in corn products
3. The blood sugar disrupting nature of corn products.
When civilizations such as the Mayans and Native Americans changed their diet to a corn-based one, rates of anemia, arthritis, rickets, and osteoporosis skyrocketed.
Our bodies were not made to exist on such a high quantity of grain-based foods as is present in the modern western diet. This evidence shows up in the archeological records of our ancestors. When archaeologists looked at skeletons of native Americans in burial mounds in the Midwest who ate corn as their primary staple, there was a 50% increase in malnutrition, four times as much incidence of iron-deficiency, and three times as much infectious disease, compared to the more hunter-gather ancestors who primarily ate meats and fruits and veggies as opposed to grains.
Keep in mind that we are not just talking about corn-on-the-cob (sweet corn) here... we are also talking about corn cereals, corn chips, and other modern corn-based foods that are promoted by food companies as "healthy." There are several reasons researchers give for the nutritional problems and the weight gain caused by a corn-dominated diet:
• Corn contains lots of fast digesting starches and sugar, which raises insulin levels, causes you to be hungrier and causes your body to store calories as fat. Don’t be mistaken, just because corn does not taste obviously sweet, doesn’t mean it isn’t full of sugars. Once eaten, your body quickly turns corn based foods into sugar. Even the starches in corn products can be broken down very quickly by your body spiking your blood sugar levels, and causing cravings for more carbohydrate-based foods.
• Corn is also a poor source of protein, usually deficient in 3 of the 8 essential amino acids: lysine, isoleucine, and tryptophan. The essential amino acids are so-named because they must be obtained from the diet, since the body is unable to manufacture them.
• Corn contains a high amount of phytate, a chemical that binds to iron and inhibits its absorption by the body. So, consequently, a diet high in phytate can make people more likely to have iron-deficiency anemia and fatigue. Phytate is also a nutrient blocker (an antinutrient) and inhibits other vitamins and minerals from being utilized.
• Corn is a poor source of certain minerals such as calcium and some vitamins such as niacin (B3). Deficiencies of niacin can result in a condition known as Pellagra, which is common in civilizations that eat a lot of corn. It can cause a variety of symptoms such as dermatitis, diarrhea, and depression. Since we are now a nation of corn-eaters, it wouldn’t be surprising that this is more common here than we realize.
• Corn oils are also used in most processed foods (along with soybean oils). Both corn oil and soybean oil are excessively high in inflammatory omega-6 fats and low in anti-inflammatory omega-3 fats. This throws the delicate balance of omega-6 to omega-3 in your body out of whack and can cause degenerative diseases and weight gain over time. In addition, corn oil and soybean oil are highly refined with high heat and solvents, which oxidizes and damages the fragile polyunsaturated oils, and makes them even more inflammatory when you ingest them in processed foods.
It's not just people who eat too much corn based foods. A large amount of the nation's corn crop ends up feeding commercially raised cattle, which are cheaply fattened on corn and other grains before slaughter. Beef from corn-fattened cattle also has much higher ratios of inflammatory omega-6 fatty acids than healthier grass fed beef which contains more anti-inflammatory omega-3 fatty acids. Most meat in supermarkets comes from grain-fed animals and not healthy grass fed animals.
Because corn and other grains are an unnatural diet and difficult to digest, cattle raised on corn develop higher stomach acidity, which is a breeding ground for the dangerous E. coli O157:H7, the deadly strain of the bacteria. E-coli is rare in healthy grass-fed meat.
While eliminating refined grains such as corn and wheat (yes, it seems they are in everything!) can seem a very daunting task, the reward is a return to wonderful health, sparkling eyes, clear skin, clear thinking, and less body fat as the body is once again able to extract appropriate nutrients from food, reduced inflammation caused by grain based foods, and a resolution of nutritional deficiencies from the lack of absorption.
Do yourself a favor, and try at least 2 weeks with no grain products at all. I guarantee you will see some drastic improvements in your weight, energy, and general outlook! This is easier than you may think... For example, instead of having pasta with sauce and meat for dinner, a better alternative would be to have just grass-fed meat, tomato sauce, and veggies, topped with a little parmesan cheese. It’s delicious and no grains!
Another example would be breakfast... instead of cereals, bagels, or muffins, try to base most of your breakfasts on cage-free organic whole eggs with lots of veggies and perhaps some bison sausage or other nitrate/nitrite-free turkey or chicken sausage. If you're very active and need a little more carbs with your breakfast, instead of grains, a small piece of fruit or some tea with a little bit of raw honey can be great additions to the egg/veggies based breakfast. This is a delicious and satisfying breakfast that will control your blood sugar, balance your hormones, and eliminate the problems with antinutrients found in most grains. Those are just a couple examples, but I think you get the point of how easy this can be.
I know it may not be realistic for everybody to give up grains fully, so the most realistic plan for many people is to only eat grain based foods (bread, pasta, cereals, etc) on their one cheat day each week, and save 6 days per week to be grain-free. Your body with thank you!
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Replies
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Sorry, but this is ridiculous. Don't eat this, don't eat that.. What the h*** are we supposed to eat?
FWIW, I'm diabetic and I eat corn. It dies nothing to spike my blood glucose. Of course, like anything else, moderation is important0 -
Do yourself a favor, and try at least 2 weeks with no grain products at all. I guarantee you will see some drastic improvements in your weight, energy, and general outlook
Ah something you will often here from pro Paleo peeps, that you can improve body comp not by a cutting cals but because you eliminated the evil food, in this case grains.
The whole article misses the point of context, as with everything, grains are fine in moderation even with the acknowledgement of the effect of anti nutrients on mineral absorption. Interestingly enough whole grains contain a lot more anti nutrients then refined grains but supposedly they are the "good" carbs0 -
WTF is wrong with corn?0
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I never eat anything that comes out looking the same way it went in0
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I'M SO OVER THESE TOPICS ABOUT EVERYTHING BEING AWFUL FOR YOU.
MODERATION, MODERATION, MODERATION.0 -
I only eat things that are alive.0
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Corn is disgusting anyways, unless it's popped.0
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I never eat anything that comes out looking the same way it went in
Soooo no chocolate cake for you? :laugh:0 -
Is Corn Healthy or making you sick and overweight?
by Mike Geary, Certified Nutrition Specialist
Contrary to popular belief, corn is a grain, not a vegetable, and is really not appropriate as a dietary staple for several reasons:
1. The problems with "antinutrients" in corn (and other grains too)
2. The inflammatory aspect of excess omega-6 fats in corn products
3. The blood sugar disrupting nature of corn products.
When civilizations such as the Mayans and Native Americans changed their diet to a corn-based one, rates of anemia, arthritis, rickets, and osteoporosis skyrocketed.
Our bodies were not made to exist on such a high quantity of grain-based foods as is present in the modern western diet. This evidence shows up in the archeological records of our ancestors. When archaeologists looked at skeletons of native Americans in burial mounds in the Midwest who ate corn as their primary staple, there was a 50% increase in malnutrition, four times as much incidence of iron-deficiency, and three times as much infectious disease, compared to the more hunter-gather ancestors who primarily ate meats and fruits and veggies as opposed to grains.
Keep in mind that we are not just talking about corn-on-the-cob (sweet corn) here... we are also talking about corn cereals, corn chips, and other modern corn-based foods that are promoted by food companies as "healthy." There are several reasons researchers give for the nutritional problems and the weight gain caused by a corn-dominated diet:
• Corn contains lots of fast digesting starches and sugar, which raises insulin levels, causes you to be hungrier and causes your body to store calories as fat. Don’t be mistaken, just because corn does not taste obviously sweet, doesn’t mean it isn’t full of sugars. Once eaten, your body quickly turns corn based foods into sugar. Even the starches in corn products can be broken down very quickly by your body spiking your blood sugar levels, and causing cravings for more carbohydrate-based foods.
• Corn is also a poor source of protein, usually deficient in 3 of the 8 essential amino acids: lysine, isoleucine, and tryptophan. The essential amino acids are so-named because they must be obtained from the diet, since the body is unable to manufacture them.
• Corn contains a high amount of phytate, a chemical that binds to iron and inhibits its absorption by the body. So, consequently, a diet high in phytate can make people more likely to have iron-deficiency anemia and fatigue. Phytate is also a nutrient blocker (an antinutrient) and inhibits other vitamins and minerals from being utilized.
• Corn is a poor source of certain minerals such as calcium and some vitamins such as niacin (B3). Deficiencies of niacin can result in a condition known as Pellagra, which is common in civilizations that eat a lot of corn. It can cause a variety of symptoms such as dermatitis, diarrhea, and depression. Since we are now a nation of corn-eaters, it wouldn’t be surprising that this is more common here than we realize.
• Corn oils are also used in most processed foods (along with soybean oils). Both corn oil and soybean oil are excessively high in inflammatory omega-6 fats and low in anti-inflammatory omega-3 fats. This throws the delicate balance of omega-6 to omega-3 in your body out of whack and can cause degenerative diseases and weight gain over time. In addition, corn oil and soybean oil are highly refined with high heat and solvents, which oxidizes and damages the fragile polyunsaturated oils, and makes them even more inflammatory when you ingest them in processed foods.
It's not just people who eat too much corn based foods. A large amount of the nation's corn crop ends up feeding commercially raised cattle, which are cheaply fattened on corn and other grains before slaughter. Beef from corn-fattened cattle also has much higher ratios of inflammatory omega-6 fatty acids than healthier grass fed beef which contains more anti-inflammatory omega-3 fatty acids. Most meat in supermarkets comes from grain-fed animals and not healthy grass fed animals.
Because corn and other grains are an unnatural diet and difficult to digest, cattle raised on corn develop higher stomach acidity, which is a breeding ground for the dangerous E. coli O157:H7, the deadly strain of the bacteria. E-coli is rare in healthy grass-fed meat.
While eliminating refined grains such as corn and wheat (yes, it seems they are in everything!) can seem a very daunting task, the reward is a return to wonderful health, sparkling eyes, clear skin, clear thinking, and less body fat as the body is once again able to extract appropriate nutrients from food, reduced inflammation caused by grain based foods, and a resolution of nutritional deficiencies from the lack of absorption.
Do yourself a favor, and try at least 2 weeks with no grain products at all. I guarantee you will see some drastic improvements in your weight, energy, and general outlook! This is easier than you may think... For example, instead of having pasta with sauce and meat for dinner, a better alternative would be to have just grass-fed meat, tomato sauce, and veggies, topped with a little parmesan cheese. It’s delicious and no grains!
Another example would be breakfast... instead of cereals, bagels, or muffins, try to base most of your breakfasts on cage-free organic whole eggs with lots of veggies and perhaps some bison sausage or other nitrate/nitrite-free turkey or chicken sausage. If you're very active and need a little more carbs with your breakfast, instead of grains, a small piece of fruit or some tea with a little bit of raw honey can be great additions to the egg/veggies based breakfast. This is a delicious and satisfying breakfast that will control your blood sugar, balance your hormones, and eliminate the problems with antinutrients found in most grains. Those are just a couple examples, but I think you get the point of how easy this can be.
I know it may not be realistic for everybody to give up grains fully, so the most realistic plan for many people is to only eat grain based foods (bread, pasta, cereals, etc) on their one cheat day each week, and save 6 days per week to be grain-free. Your body with thank you!
So, how long have you been corn free?0 -
I never eat anything that comes out looking the same way it went in
Here's a hint - Chew :laugh:0 -
I think unless you have IBS or other stomach issues i don't see why you would need to stay away from corn...0
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I bet I could find some kind of article or study to say we should never EVER eat broccoli because it will give us incurable diseases.
Anyway, corn's fine. Yes, it's really more of a grain than a vegetable and is higher in carbohydrates than green leafy veggies. But whatever. If you wanna eat corn, eat corn, it's not going to kill you!
I don't eat corn #1 because I'm just not a big fan and #2 it really weirds me out that it doesn't, you know, break down during digestion (you know what I'm talking about), but I don't think it's bad for you to eat if you want to eat it. Then again, I eat chips and queso and don't feel bad about that either. Moderation y'all.0 -
Well I don't like corn, so I don't eat it. But I feel fine letting my kids eat corn....so eat corn and be merry.0
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I don't subscribe to this "get rid of this one thing (these three things) and you will be slim" mentality.
If it is edible, I am going to eat it and enjoy it....especially if it comes from the earth. Mayans/Incas/other ancient civilizations ate corn as their primary food source and they didn't have problems with obesity and it's subsequent health issues.
I'm more likely to believe our problems are related to snicker's bars and the HUGE portions that have become the norm...oh, and sitting on our butts all day instead of going out, picking corn!0 -
Lol why do these posts come from people who havent been on the forums but for a second.
Paleo?
Didnt we evolve?
LOL
If it works for you then hats off!
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• Corn contains lots of fast digesting starches and sugar, which raises insulin levels, causes you to be hungrier and causes your body to store calories as fat.
Do yourself a favor, and try at least 2 weeks with no grain products at all. I guarantee you will see some drastic improvements in your weight, energy, and general outlook! This is easier than you may think... For example, instead of having pasta with sauce and meat for dinner, a better alternative would be to have just grass-fed meat, tomato sauce, and veggies, topped with a little parmesan cheese. It’s delicious and no grains!
So don't eat corn because it spikes your insulin and makes you fat, but eat meat which spikes your insulin and makes you fat? Of course the mere spiking of insulin doesn't make you fat0 -
I only eat things that are alive.
I'm sorry, but what do you eat then?0 -
I'm Native American. At least 75% according to the quantum. We are prone to alcoholism and diabetes among other things but those are the two prevalent in my family lineage. We don't eat a lot of corn or corn based products because they create spike in our blood sugar. We know this through blood testing, fasting and monitoring our sugar. However, this is ONLY true for our tribe as well as most tribes that orginated in the north eastern part of the US where corn doesn't grow that well. Tribes that originated in the midwest and the southwest don't seem to have this problem.
Now to address wheat. If we eliminate wheat from our diet, our blood sugar also tanks. That's virtually the only carbohydrate that was a staple of the Native American diet. I have no problem with wheat. I do have a problem with corn and corn-based products though. And I'm not even a full Indian.0 -
I think its a great article and worthy of sharing. By posting it, I am not saying that I am corn free, corn is almost everything we eat, just check the label and I love sweet corn on the cob in the summer but some of the points made are valid. I am giving this a shot and if I feel better then I'm going to give it up.0
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I only eat things that are alive.
I'm sorry, but what do you eat then?
I'm assuming babies, mostly.0 -
I never eat anything that comes out looking the same way it went in
Amen to that.0 -
Eat candy corn. Its the only corn that is good for you.0
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I think its a great article and worthy of sharing. By posting it, I am not saying that I am corn free, corn is almost everything we eat, just check the label and I love sweet corn on the cob in the summer but some of the points made are valid. I am giving this a shot and if I feel better then I'm going to give it up.
I'm curious, what points did you find valid?0 -
I only eat things that are alive.
I'm sorry, but what do you eat then?
I'm assuming babies, mostly.
Delicious, delicious babies.0 -
If grains are bad, then why do people who eat them benefit?
Fiber from Whole Grains, but not Refined Grains, Is Inversely Associated with All-Cause Mortality in Older Women
http://www.healthmegamall.com/Articles/BabeskinArticle269.pdf
Whole Grain, Bran Intake Associated With Lower Risk of Death in Diabetic Women
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/05/100510161246.htm
Whole-grain intake is inversely associated with the metabolic syndrome and mortality in older adults
http://www.ajcn.org/content/83/1/124.abstract
Thanks, I'll keep eating my corn. (and rice, and whole wheat, and barley, and oats.)0 -
I'M SO OVER THESE TOPICS ABOUT EVERYTHING BEING AWFUL FOR YOU.
MODERATION, MODERATION, MODERATION.
Thank you! Blah blah blah......eat this for this reason, don't eat this for this reason. Sitting on the toilet for too long can cause cancer.....ahhhh! I don't care. Yeah I want to live as long as possible, but seriously I think the writers of some of these articles think you can live forever by avoiding certain things and following a strict strict diet. All these "super health nuts" are going to feel pretty stupid someday, lying in a hospital dying of nothing.0 -
I highly, highly, highly recommend reading some of Mat Lalonde's research. He is an organic chemist and is really researching grains in the human diet.
He makes some good reminders.
1. The amount of time we have been an agricultural society is only a speck of human evolution, BUT... Correlation doesn't equal causation, although it IS grounds for hypothesis and testing.
2. There are anti nutrients in every food. This alone is not evidence for a non grain diet.
3. Invalid inference: "We evolved over millions of years without consuming foods that became readily available upon the advent of agriculture, hence, we are not adapted to tehse evolutionary novel foods."
Correct (after looking through past research, etc - see the presentation): There has been insufficient time and evolutionary pressure for complete adaptation to seed consumption to arise in Home sapients. As a result, individuals that tolerate grains and legumes should be considered the minority, not the majority.
Video: https://player.vimeo.com/video/27570335
Slides: http://www.slideshare.net/ancestralhealth/an-organicchemistss-perspective-on-paleo
It's long and technical. If you don't watch the whole thing, I'd recommend minutes 0:00-9:00 (slides 1-12) & 34:50-end (slides 80-116)
Copyright - Mat Lalonde, PhD
As for me, I've been grain free for four months. And yes, corn is in nearly all heavily processed foods. It works for me - to each their own
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Makes me want some grill corn on the cob, grill in its own husks and smothered in lime chili butter!0
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Corn is almost everything we eat? :huh:I think its a great article and worthy of sharing. By posting it, I am not saying that I am corn free, corn is almost everything we eat, just check the label and I love sweet corn on the cob in the summer but some of the points made are valid. I am giving this a shot and if I feel better then I'm going to give it up.0 -
Lol why do these posts come from people who havent been on the forums but for a second.
Paleo?
Didnt we evolve?
LOL
If it works for you then hats off!
Cute kitty!!! Looks just like my little guy.0
This discussion has been closed.
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