Popcorn - Why Mess with a Good Thing?

Since I have been spending much of my time down at Pocketful of Moxie - which launches tomorrow by the way - I have huge plans of settling in tonight and taking in a movie.

That always begins thoughts of snacks - and what snacks to eat during said movie. The first thing I always think of is popcorn - so we're taking a revisit to my 'popcorn post' of yesteryear.......

I love going to the theatre to watch a good movie.

Correction - I used to love going to the theatre to eat as much popcorn, candy and soda as I could stuff down my body before the 2 hour time limit 'however long the movie is' was up. I was probably not great dating material at the time but a theatre is always dark and no one could see how much I didn't care - or how much I loved popcorn. Really loved it.

The food was always my favorite thing about movie going, but once the food aspect of my life changed, everything had to adjust accordingly. It wasn't a struggle. I didn't stand outside theatres and beg for them to open the doors so I could buy some of that hot, delicious popcorn. I don't think that's what the police report said.....

Things adjusted in my life because it was necessary. It happened without much thought, and it happened  to include phasing out of movie theatre food.

A large buttered popcorn at the movie theater has 126 grams of fat and 1,640 calories. I am not a counter of calories, but the heart stopping action of this 'treat' is enough to make one stop and think before shovelling handfuls into our mouths.....and why does theatre popcorn and butter end up leaving us with that burny lip feeling? I never understood that....

The nutritional information listed for movie theater popcorn represents the entire container as one serving. Interesting....

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 The carbohydrate value for movie theater popcorn varies depending on the container size.

The child's popcorn has approximately 25 g carbohydrates while the large bucket has approximately 90 g.

Child-sized movie theater popcorn without butter has approximately 14 g saturated fat and 20 g total fat. With butter, it has 22 g saturated fat and 37 g total fat.

A large-sized bucket of popcorn without butter has approximately 55 g saturated fat and 77 g total fat. The large bucket with butter has 73 g saturated fat and 126 g total fat.

A few movie theaters use canola oil instead of coconut oil to make their popcorn. Yuck.

Small-size movie theater popcorn has about 8 g of protein while a large has 16 g. The total fat and protein values may vary with each movie theater chain.

Movie theater popcorn does not contain significant amounts of vitamins and minerals. When I was going to the movies, vitamins and minerals were the last thing on my list.

Small-sized popcorn has 2 percent of the recommended daily value for iron based on a 2,000-calorie diet. The iron value increases slightly with larger popcorn sizes. Movie theater popcorn is high in sodium.

A small-sized container has approximately 150 mg of sodium. That is insanity!

This value increases with larger popcorn sizes. The sodium value does not account for consumer added salt before eating. Let's not forget that salt is also a major ingredient to the flavored shakers they offer at theatres - so double the salt right there. Wow.

OK, so now that we have covered all of that - is there anything else you should know about movie theatre popcorn? Of course!

Here is a list of ingredients that are currently in your movie theatre popcorn. I know, I'm sorry.

GMO corn.

90% of the earth's corn is GMO now. Act accordingly.

Partially Hydrogenated Soybean Oil.

Trans fat linked to inflammation, free radical damage and cancer.

Any processed soy is not good for us.

Artificial Butter Flavor - Diacetyl & Acetoin.

Linked to asthma and respiratory problems. Read one story here.

People who work with this stuff have to wear protective gear or they end up with 'butter lung.'

One woman's story about her popcorn lung illness made the paper here.

Other ingredients in movie theatre popcorn include;

Beta Carotene.

For color.

TBHQ.

Anti-foaming agent

Citric Acid.

One final thought - the chemical diacetyl is not simply found in your theatre treat. It is also found in the at home, microwaveable version (please throw out your microwave - you don't need it....read why here).

Ok, Ok...one more piece of information I found; (thanks, How Stuff Works)

In 2003 and 2004, federal health officials looked into the cases of several hundred sick workers at popcorn manufacturing plants. Those workers were diagnosed with popcorn lung, likely caused by inhalation of diacetyl fumes. The owner of a popcorn company in Montana died from complications believed to be related to ingredients in popcorn flavoring [source: Seattle Post-Intelligencer]. 

It's not only hundreds of popcorn factory workers -- workers in candy and potato chip factories have gotten sick as well, as have at least 20 more workers who manufactured products with diacetyl [source: Seattle Post-Intelligencer]. More than $20 million in damages have been paid out as a result of lawsuits filed by factory workers harmed by diacetyl, and as previously mentioned, some workers have died [source: Seattle Post-Intelligencer].

The sick workers in popcorn and candy factories were exposed to large quantities of diacetyl fumes on a daily basis, but could consumers be at risk? On the next page, we'll look at what's believed to be the first case of a popcorn lover suffering from bronchiolitis obliterans.

Sure, diacetyl is the reason our popcorn has the flavor it does (and why we can't seem to replicate it at home - darn it!)....but if that's why my popcorn tastes so good to me, I'll go without.

Instead of eating the popcorn with the diacetyl poured all over top of it (and if you were like me, you started the butter when the tub was only half full, ensuring proper coverage) - try these interesting and delicious twists on our old favorites. If I can love them, so can you.

*Hot air popcorn with olive oil drizzled on it and parmesan sprinkled over top. Toss and enjoy!

*Hot air popcorn with coconut oil (way yummier than butter) - add your favorite true spices like cayenne, chili spice, garlic powder.....you decide!

Do you have a great diacetyl-free popcorn recipe? I'd love to hear it! Leave it in the comments below - thanks!

Rock your day!